Fans Are Furious About Margot Robbie’s Latest Co-Star
There might one day be a time when people stop freaking out about movie castings, but that day isn’t today, far from it. Instead, we have yet another example of fans drawing up complaints about castings based on original work, and there’s a chance this one has real legs.. The latest is the casting of Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi in the upcoming Wuthering Heights adaptation, with fans of Emily Bronte’s work noting that Elordi doesn’t represent the type of character Bronte wrote about in the book.
Jacob Elordi Not Right?
The issue with the Jacob Elordi casting alongside Margot Robbie in Wuthering Heights is the description of his Heathcliff Earnshaw character in the original novel. In this book, Heathcliff is described as a “dark-skinned gypsy,” and Elordi clearly doesn’t exhibit any of those features. Heathcliffe is adopted as a baby after Mr. Earnshaw found him abandoned on the streets of Liverpool. His relationship to Catherine is central to the novel, but folks are at odds with the casting because of the book’s description.
Bronte Experts Weigh In
As reported in Deadline, a number of Bronte experts weighed in with concern over the Jacob Elordi casting alongside Margot Robbie saying it was effectively whitewashing the role to fit Hollywood. Michael Steward of the Bronte Writing Center said there’s been, “many years of white actors playing the more ambiguous ethnic character…” And Dr Claire O’Callaghan from the Brontë Society followed up that the “casting of a white actor…overlooks the ambiguity that’s there.”
On that latter point, it doesn’t appear there’s too much ambiguity in the original Wuthering Heights novel, though it could still clearly be left up to interpretation. There’s also the question of whether it truly matters in the context of telling the best version of the story.
Margot Robbie As Catherine
The latest Wuthering Heights adaptation stars Margot Robbie as Catherine Earnshaw with Jacob Elordi as Heathcliff. No other major casting roles have yet been announced for the Emerald Fennell (Saltburn) film. There are clearly more to come with the stars now set for the film. Because of the star power already present, it stands to reason we’ll have some other big names in the mix here.
The Newest Adaptation
Wuthering Heights, published by Emily Bronte in 1847, tells the story of Catherine and Heathcliff’s relationship, starting as effectively brother and sister after he is taken in by the family.
This theme of love plays out with Heathcliff coming back later in life as a rich man looking to take revenge against the Linton family (Catherine married into) and gain control of the Wuthering Heights estate.
Not The First Wuthering Heights
The Margot Robbie adaptation of Wuthering Heights isn’t the first. The 2011 version featured James Howson as Heathcliffe and Kaya Scodelario in the role as Catherine. Before that, Tom Hardy played the Heathcliff role in the 2009 two-part television adaptation.
It remains to be seen how much other backlash comes from the initial casting of Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi in Wuthering Heights. But it’s clear that some fans of the author and the work aren’t happy at all with where things started.
Source: Deadline
