Wuthering Heights: 7 More Adaptations Available To Stream Now
Maybe you’ve already seen Emerald Fennell’s new Wuthering Heights movie in the cinema, and you’re now deep-diving into every adaption that’s ever existed.
It could be that you’re more of a “watch on the sofa” type of viewer, and want something to whet your appetite while you wait for Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi’s effort to start streaming.
Or, perhaps you’re a purist who’s boycotting the whole thing because of all the controversy surrounding the casting in the new movie.
Whatever your reason for seeking out more Wuthering Heights in your life, Emily Brontë’s classic novel has been a constant inspiration for filmmakers for almost a century now, so there’s plenty of material to choose from.
From former Bonds playing Heathcliff to modern-day reimaginings, here are seven reworkings of Wuthering Heights available to stream right now…
Wuthering Heights: The black-and-white film version from the 1930s
So iconic it’s preserved in the US Library of Congress for its cultural significance, one of the OG Wuthering Heights adaptations stars Merle Oberon and Laurence Olivier as Cathy and Heathcliff.
Like Emerald Fennell’s take, this 1939 film chose to chop out the second half of the book, which is basically a whole load of Heathcliff being cruel to children, opting to go heavy on the romance instead.
If you’re after a black-and-white classic to balm your dating app fatigue, this version is the one.
Stream it on: Amazon Prime Video
Wuthering Heights: The Timothy Dalton film from the early 1970s
Some 15 years before he became the fourth James Bond, Timothy Dalton was running round the Yorkshire moors as Heathcliff for this 1970 film adaptation of Wuthering Heights.
Playing very fast and loose with the original source material and focusing – yet again – solely on the first half of the book, this version was a box office hit.
However it was less loved by the critics, who called it “simply petulant” at the time of release. The original controversial remake, perhaps?
Buy it on: Sky Store
Wuthering Heights: The BBC TV series from the 1970s
One of the first adaptations to fully embrace Heathcliff’s revenge arc, the BBC’s five-part TV series is the kind of prestige drama teachers would wheel out on the big telly as a treat.
With five hours’ worth of material to play with, the series was able to faithfully dive into both parts of the book and explore some of the darker subject matter as well as the romance.
Stream it on: BBC iPlayer
Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights: The 1992 film with Sinéad O’Connor, Ralph Fiennes and Juliet Binoche
With a bizarre – but brilliant! – cast including Ralph Fiennes (in his debut film), Juliet Binoche and Sinéad O’Connor (acting as Emily Brontë herself), this 90s adaptation also made an effort to include both sides of the story.
Come for Juliet’s French-Yorkshire accent, stay for Ralph’s chilling depiction of Heathcliff long before he was the movie star he is now.
Stream it on: Paramount+
Wuthering Heights: The Clueless and 10 Things I Hate About You-esque 21st century remake on MTV
An early noughties MTV-produced teen romance musical television film version of Wuthering Heights, you say? Inject it straight into our veins.
This version was so damn hip it did away with Cathy and Heathcliff to make way for “Cate” and “Heath”, while replacing the Yorkshire Moors with California.
You’ll also spot Katherine Heigl playing Isabel Linton, a couple of years before her big break on Grey’s Anatomy, while Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne’s eldest daughter Aimee also makes a rare on-screen appearance.
Buy it on: Apple TV+
Wuthering Heights: The ITV drama with Tom Hardy as Heathcliff
It would be unfair to talk about Tom Hardy’s turn at playing Heathcliff without preparing you for the jump scare that is his wig collection for the two-part series.
Now that unpleasantness is out of the way, the 2009 TV adaptation of Wuthering Heights shuffled around the order of events in the books, giving more prominence to the character of Nelly, played here by Sarah Lancashire.
In a true testament to the project’s romantic themes, Tom and his co-star Charlotte Riley (who played Cathy) ended up falling in love on set, and have been married since 2014.
Watch it on: ITVX
Wuthering Heights: Andrea Arnold’s very well-received film starring Kaya Scodelario and James Howson
In stark contrast to Emerald Fennell’s take on Wuthering Heights, Andrea Arnold’s on-screen adaptation was one of the few to feature a Black actor in the role of Heathcliff, as well as a teenage Cathy, staying true to the source material, with James Howson and Skins’ Kaya Scodelario taking on the iconic literary roles.
While it didn’t do massive numbers at the box office, critics praised how it “stripped the story ruthlessly down to its bare essentials: pain, anger and love”.