2026’s most controversial film fans would still ‘100,000% watch many more times’ is streaming now

We’re not even half way through the year, but one of 2026’s most controversial films – unlikely to be dethroned – has arrived on streaming.

Released in time for Valentine’s Day and becoming one of the highest grossing films this year so far with $242million (£178.1m) at the box office, Emmerald Fennell’s adaptation of Wuthering Heights caused a big stir, fiercely dividing audiences.

It did away with a large chunk of the narrative from Emily Brontë’s original 1847 novel – to many readers’ outrage – and focused more on the tragedy and yearning between central characters Cathy Earnshaw (Margot Robbie) and Heathcliff (Jacob Elordi).

The movie’s bold provocation, including songs on its soundtrack by Charli XCX as well as explicitly sexual imagery and scenes of BDSM, saw it labelled ‘less Wuthering Heights, more Fifty Shades of Grimm’ and ‘lurid and wildly over-sexed’, as well as ‘luminously feral’.

Others were also unhappy with the casting of the lead roles, deeming both Elordi and Robbie unsuitable due to age and also the long-held theory over Hathcliff’s background.

The film’s official synopsis describes it as ‘a passionate and tumultuous love story set against the backdrop of the Yorkshire moors, exploring the intense and destructive relationship between Heathcliff and Catherine Earnshaw’.

Now fans can make their own minds up (or start the first of those ‘100,000%’ guaranteed rewatches) from the comfort of their own sofas, after Wuthering Heights was added to HBO Max on Friday – and NOW in the UK as well.

Adopted as an orphan sibling but treated poorly by Cathy’s father (a grotesque Martin Clunes), Heathcliff runs away when he thinks he has been rejected by Cathy after she sets her cap at wealthy new neighbour Edgar Linton (Shazad Latif) in a bid to save the family from poverty.

But his return years later sets a string of devastating events in motion.

The film’s cast also includes Adolescence’s award-winning star Owen Cooper as the young Heathcliff, Alison Oliver, Oscar nominee Hong Chau, Charlotte Mellington and House of the Dragon actor Ewan Mitchell.

‘Best movie ever. 100,000% would watch so may more times,’ insisted Evany on review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes, while Joanna agreed, adding: ‘The story is powerful, emotional, and unforgettable. It really pulls you in with its intense characters and deep love story, making it a film that stays with you long after watching.’

Celcilia said that the film ‘transported me to a different time, social class, and a tug and pull love story. I enjoy the classic Emily Brontë love story and this adaptation is cinematic and raw if nothing else’, giving it a full five -star review.

Other fans appreciated the tear-jerking nature of this adaptation, with Charley saying their girlfriend was ‘bawling her eyes out’ and Kimmie writing, ‘Loved it, so emotional!’ as another fan admitted to tears and said they were ‘blown away by their acting and the chemistry between Jacob and Margot’.

Lilia also shared that, having not read the book, she was ‘devastated’ by the film’s ending – although it does diverge somewhat from the original’s – while Abra’s review warned that it was ‘very sex heavy and not true to the book’, but felt if you could get past that the movie was ‘enjoyable’.

Others had no time for it at all though, with Joe seething: ‘Worse [sic.] movie I have seen in a long time. Didn’t even come close to the book!!’

Critics were similarly divided, with The Daily Beast describing Fennell’s adaptation as ‘a fleetingly recognisable tale of love, desire, obsession, regret, bitterness, and ire that, at every turn, plays as florid, horny, juvenile fanfiction’.

‘With a chemistry-free central romance between the bizarrely uninteresting Heathcliff and Cathy, this film self-deflates,’ complained Kevin Maher of The Times, while Little White Lies’ Hannah Stong called it ‘a half-remembered story dressed in a beautiful gown that seems destined for TikTok fan edits and Pinterest mood boards rather than soul-stirring emotional catharsis’.

However, the BBC’s Caryn James argued: ‘If you embrace the film’s audacious style and think of it as a reinvention not an adaptation, this bold, artful Wuthering Heights is utterly absorbing.’

And in a five-star review, The Telegraph’s Robbie Collin called the movie ‘a bosom-heaving, gasp-inducing thrill ride’, adding: ‘Style over substance? Not at all – it’s more that Fennell understands that style can be substance when you do it right.’

Wuthering Heights is streaming now on HBO Max and NOW (with a cinema membership) in the UK.

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