"Wuthering Heights" isn't even out yet and people already have a ton of thoughts about it.
In the months and weeks leading up to the big-screen romance (in theaters Feb. 13), folks on social media have weighed in onthe casting of Jacob Elordi, 28, as the tormented Heathcliff, who is described as a "dark-skinned gypsy" in Emily Brontë's 1847 novel.
They have alsoraised their eyebrowsabout Margot Robbie, 35, whose ill-fated heroine Catherine Earnshaw isjust a teenagerin the book. But there is good reason for her casting.
In an early scene of "Wuthering Heights," the headstrong Catherine is pushed to go meet her wealthy new neighbor, Edgar Linton (Shazad Latif). According to her father (Martin Clunes), this may be Catherine's "last chance" to get a husband before she becomes undesirable to men.
Over the course of the movie, "Cathy's in her mid-20s to early 30s, which puts so much more pressure on the marriage situation," Robbie tells USA TODAY. "A bunch of people telling an 18-year-old, 'Oh, f---, you better hurry up and get married!' That doesn't really hold the same weight to a modern-day audience member."
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More:Margot Robbie reveals 'super-intimate' reality of 'Wuthering Heights'
Whereas now, "particularly for women, there's suddenly this checklist that society has given you and you better have it all ticked off by the time you're 30: get married, get a house, have your career figured out, and start thinking about kids," Robbie continues. For Gen Z and millennial moviegoers, "watching an older Cathy have that pressure might carry more weight."
Like Brontë's book, the movie begins with a younger Cathy (Charlotte Mellington) and Heathcliff (Owen Cooper) as childhood friends who struggle to express their love for each other as adults. Through Robbie and Elordi's aged-up casting, director Emerald Fennell wanted to capture the epic nature of the decades-spanning story.
"I really felt that in order to get that sense of time passing and of yearning and the slow burn, they needed to be children and then they needed to be adults," Fennell says. "Everyone is so young in the book, which makes it extremely fascinating yet very hard to relate to. It's the same (reason) why people very rarely make 'Romeo and Juliet' with real 14-year-olds."
Drive us mad with your "Wuthering Heights" fashion looks, Margot and Jacob ... The stars of the upcoming Emerald Fennell adaptation of Emily Brontë's 1847 gothic novel have fans swooning over red carpet looks and press tour interactions. Margot Robbie, who plays Catherine Earnshaw, and Jacob Elordi, who portrays Heathcliff, stepped out in Los Angeles this week to promote the film, out in theaters on Feb. 13, 2026." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" />
Margot Robbie poses during a photocall before the screening of "Wuthering Heights" at the Grand Rex theater in Paris on Feb. 2, 2026. " style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Margot Robbie" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Jacob Elordi, Emerald Fennell, Margot Robbie and Shazad Latif" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Jacob Elordi " style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Margot Robbie " style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Jacob Elordi and Margot Robbie attend Warner Bros. Pictures and MRC Presents World Premiere of "Wuthering Heights" at TCL Chinese Theatre on January 28, 2026 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images)" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Jacob Elordi " style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Margot Robbie" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
From left: Hong Chau, Alison Oliver, Shazad Latif, Margot Robbie, Emerald Fennell, Jacob Elordi and Charli xcx " style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Charli xcx" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Charli xcx" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Finn Keane and Charli xcx" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Jacob Elordi" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Jacob Elordi" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Jacob Elordi" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Margot Robbie " style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Jacob Elordi and Margot Robbie" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Margot Robbie" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Jacob Elordi and Margot Robbie" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Jacob Elordi and Margot Robbie" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Josey McNamara, Margot Robbie and Tom Ackerley" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Jacob Elordi, Margot Robbie, Josey McNamara, Emerald Fennell, Hong Chau, Shazad Latif and Charli xcx " style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Margot Robbie" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Josey McNamara, Margot Robbie and Tom Ackerley" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Margot Robbie attends a photocall for "Wuthering Heights" in Beverly Hills, California on Jan. 28, 2026." style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
"Wuthering Heights" director Emerald Fennell, Charli xcx and Margot Robbie " style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
"Wuthering Heights" stars Margot Robbie, Hong Chau and Alison Oliver" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Emerald Fennell, Charli xcx, Margot Robbie, Jacob Elordi, Shazad Latif, Hong Chau and Alison Oliver " style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Margot Robbie adorned her scarlet red look with Jessica McCormack jewelry, featuring a a 10ct ball n'chain pear diamond shaped pendant suspended by red ribbon, paired with a chubby daisy diamond and ruby halo ring. " style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Jacob Elordi and Margot Robbie" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Jacob Elordi and Margot Robie" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Margot Robbie, Jacob Elordi and Emerald Fennell" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Emerald Fennell, Margot Robbie, Hong Chau and Alison Oliver and Charli xcx " style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Margot Robbie, Jacob Elordi and Charli xcx appear on Sirius XM's "The Julia Cunningham Show" at Greystone Manor on Jan. 28, 2026, in Beverly Hills, California. " style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 
Margot Robbie, Jacob Elordi and Charli xcx " style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> 'Wuthering Heights' premiere looks from Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi
Drive us madwith your"Wuthering Heights"fashion looks, Margot and Jacob ...The stars of the upcoming Emerald Fennell adaptation of Emily Brontë's 1847 gothic novel have fans swooning over red carpet looks and press tour interactions.Margot Robbie, who plays Catherine Earnshaw, andJacob Elordi, who portrays Heathcliff, stepped out in Los Angeles this week to promote the film, out in theaters on Feb. 13, 2026.
After her father falls into financial ruin, Catherine chooses to marry Edgar for the security he can offer. But she still longs for Heathcliff, who goes away and amasses a fortune of his own.
"Cathy's decision is devastating," Fennell says. As a woman, "the circumstances in which she is living are untenable; they're dangerous. This isn't an 18-year-old making a decision flippantly – this is a woman being faced with two really distinct, stark choices."
Ultimately, "it felt like something that made more sense to me for this version."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Margot Robbie defends 'Wuthering Heights' casting as teen Cathy
