Wuthering Heights Adaptation Secures £56 Million in Opening Weekend Box Office
Emerald Fennell's bold cinematic interpretation of Emily Brontë's classic gothic novel, Wuthering Heights, has generated an impressive £56 million in global box office revenue during its opening weekend. This substantial financial performance establishes the film as the highest-grossing new release of 2026 to date, demonstrating significant audience interest despite a notably divided critical reception.
Strong Financial Performance and Market Reception
Released strategically on Friday, 13 February 2026, to coincide with Valentine's Day weekend, the film starring Margot Robbie as Cathy and Jacob Elordi as Heathcliff exceeded many commercial projections. In the United States, the adaptation garnered $34.8 million, equivalent to approximately £25.5 million, marking the most substantial opening weekend of the year thus far in that market.
While US earnings were marginally below some forecasts, international box office returns surpassed expectations, particularly noteworthy as the film has yet to premiere in several major markets including Japan, Vietnam, and China. This international success suggests a robust global appetite for the reinterpretation.
Audience Demographics and Critical Polarisation
Marketing efforts positioned the film as a contemporary bodice-ripper, primarily targeting female audiences. PostTrak research data indicates this strategy resonated strongly, with women comprising 76 percent of the international viewership during the opening weekend. Interestingly, male attendance figures were higher in non-US markets, indicating broader demographic appeal overseas.
The divergence between critical opinion and audience reception is particularly striking. On the review aggregation platform Rotten Tomatoes, Wuthering Heights currently holds an audience approval rating of 80 percent, contrasted with a considerably lower critical average of 61 percent based on 244 professional reviews.
Contrasting Critical Perspectives
Critical assessments have ranged from scathing condemnation to enthusiastic praise. The Independent's film critic Clarisse Loughrey awarded the film just one star, describing it as "an astonishingly hollow work" that "uses the guise of interpretation to gut one of the most impassioned, emotionally violent novels ever written."
Conversely, The Telegraph provided a five-star review, with critic Robbie Collins celebrating the film as "resplendently lurid, oozy and wild" and "an obsessive film about obsession." The BBC similarly responded positively, awarding four stars in their evaluation.
Artistic Choices and Adaptation Decisions
Much of the critical debate centres on Fennell's deliberate departures from Brontë's 1847 source material. The director has chosen to focus predominantly on the novel's first half, a narrative decision she has openly defended. "I think that's really the moment that draws to an end in the book," Fennell explained. "If you're making a movie, and you've got to be fairly tight, you've got to make those kinds of hard decisions."
The film's stylised presentation, including its distinctive titling convention as "Wuthering Heights", further emphasises its contemporary reinterpretation rather than faithful period reproduction. This creative approach has clearly resonated with cinema-goers, if not uniformly with critics, resulting in a commercially successful opening that sets a high benchmark for 2026's cinematic releases.
