Wuthering Heights movie's most disturbing moments as audience slams sexually explicit scenes

A first look at the new Wuthering Heights adaptation has been slammed by criticsfor its explicit scenes. The remake of the 1857 novel by Yorkshire's Emily Brontë has been a long-standing movie over the years, with the earliest film adaptation being in 1920, directed by A. V. Bramble.

But the 1939 adaptation, starring Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon, is perhaps the most famous, having been nominated for Best Picture at the 1939 Oscars. But the 2026 edition, starring Jacob Elordiand Margot Robbie as Heathcliff Linton and Catherine Earnshaw, hasn't gone down too well.

Saltburn director Emerald Fennell has given the classic novel a complete Hollywood makeover. The movie is set on the moors surrounding the Brontë Parsonage in Howarth, where the Brontë sisters lived and took inspiration. But the new movie is a far cry from the original novel Brontë had initially published under the pen name Ellis Bell.

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After a test screening, the film has been branded "tonally abrasive" and "sexually explicit". The movie starts with a public hanging but this is perhaps the most tamed part of the opening sequel.

Mid-execution, the male appears to ejaculate, sparking a frenzy in the onlooking crowd, which subsequently descends into an orgiastic mess, with a nun "fondling the corpse's visible erection." Elsewhere, the theme of sexual drive runs throughout the production, with scenes of "clinical masturbation", as well as bondage using horse reins, while there's less of the conventional romance or emotions that those familiar with Brontë's work may be familiar with.

In the teaser trailer, the grand estate on the Yorkshire Moors instantly sets the tone, which fans will instantly recognise, before things soon turn risqué, with two female hands seen on screen kneading bread.

Shortly after this, the risqué scenes continue, a bare and glistening back is seen, before a shirtless Jacob Elordi is seen handling hay in a stable, the continuation of kneading bread, fingers running through egg yolks, and Cathy slipping her fingers into Heathcliff's mouth, a woman having horse tack placed on her face in a "BDSM-tinged encounter", before a finger is seen probing the mouth of a fish.

And it's fair to say that the new adaptation has sparked a very different response to previous films. One social media user said: "This looks and feels garish & tacky as sh** lmao God bless." While a second commented: "Someone take away Emerald Fennell's directing license, I'm so serious."

One person who attended the test screening said that there are scenes described as "purposefully discomforting masturbation" with "suggestive textures" featuring throughout the movie. Meanwhile, one writer said it was "the most unusual Wuthering Heights", adding: "What the next film version called for was a jolt of fresh energy, something bold and unexpected. For better or worse, it seems that's exactly what Emerald Fennell may have brought to the table."

However, some fans have expressed their excitement to watch the movie, which is slated for release on Valentine's Day 2026. "It looks stunning and erotic. (In the best way)," said one. A second went on to write: "Margot Robbie + Jacob Elordi in a gothic Valentine's release? That's gonna pack theatres."

One journalist stated that the trailer looks "way better" than they had initially expected. Speaking about the upcoming movie earlier this year, Jacob gushed: "The performances from everyone – it's breathtaking," he said. "I'’s an incredible romance. It’s a true epic. It's visually beautiful. The script is beautiful. The costumes are incredible."

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