{shortcode-ec1a4565b33fdc4ad3b6aaedac84bc70f82829a2}

A bony wire frame peeks through the glittering (alleged) polyester of white skirts. Block eyebrows arch over contoured cheeks. (Allegedly) bleached blonde hair sweeps into the iconic half-up-half down style that no woman in the 19th century ever wore.

Behold: Margot Robbie in the upcoming 2026 film adaptation of “Wuthering Heights.”

Photos of Robbie in the wedding costume were leaked in March, sparking outrage from devout Emily Brontë fans, people who’ve seen a period drama at some point in their lives, and individuals who know that polyester wasn’t manufactured until the mid-1930s.

And then the official trailer was released this past week — and my abject hatred morphed into confusion.

The film was written, produced, and directed by Emerald Fennell of “Saltburn” fame. The trailer features a heady mix of Charli XCX’s “Everything is romantic,” oddly suggestive breadmaking, Robbie’s gazing-into-the-void stare, and glimpses of Jacob Elordi’s (Heathcliff) sweaty chest. Also, people frequently putting fingers (their own and others’) in their mouths.

It’s surrealist — the trailer shows a blue room with walls completely coated in diamonds. Strange red glassware, like oversized thrift store vases, grace the gilded tables. Robbie’s “peasant” costume is constructed of striking scarlet and blue checkered fabric, jarring viewers out of 19th century Yorkshire into some warped fairy tale, while the background of the stable scene looks like a modern mansion in California with some historical refuse thrown on the ground here and there. Like Joe Wright’s 2012 adaptation of “Anna Karenina,” the set is designed to look like a theater stage rather than reality.

“Wuthering Heights” is playing a dangerous game. It is a truth universally acknowledged that 2022’s adaptation of Jane Austen’s “Persuasion” was a halfhearted — some say ghastly — attempt to breathe new life into an already extraordinary story. To give just one example, Prahlad Srihari of News9 writes that the film is plagued by “deadened modern jargon.” Studios may rely on tacky modern monologues and other anachronistic elements to freshen 19th century source material, and the leaked photos of the wedding suggest that “Wuthering Heights” may fall into this category. However, it is possible that Fennell’s film could find the elusive balance between refreshing and revolting that “Persuasion” could not.

The wellspring of these modern-jargon infused period dramas in the past few decades is the critical and commercial success of 2006’s “Marie Antoinette.” What makes “Marie Antoinette” a great film and “Persuasion” a horrible one is the respect that director Sofia Coppola has for the original history. In one shot of “Marie Antoinette,” modern converse sneakers lie amidst the 18th-century items in Marie’s closet while “I Want Candy” blares in the background. This anachronism conveys to modern viewers that Marie is a teenage girl allowed all the money and leisure she could ever want. However, Kirsten Dunst’s vulnerable depiction of Marie crying in a bathtub illustrates how her lavish lifestyle conceals the terrifying loneliness of her station. This scene is so powerful because it parallels the isolation that many teenagers feel as they assert their independence from their family, without truly understanding who they are and what their life will hold.

Meanwhile, 2022’s “Persuasion” takes the core of heroine Anne Eliot — her faith in the enduring power of love and her artistic appreciation for all the emotions of life — and throws it out in exchange for a half-hearted attempt at the enemies-to-lovers banter of “Pride and Prejudice” with the writing skills of a poorly edited fanfiction.

I say this as someone who loves fanfiction: a multimillion dollar film should not feel like something you’d post on Archive of Our Own.

The costumes and modern music in “Marie Antoinette” heighten themes of teenage excess and angst while simultaneously demonstrating an awareness of the time period’s fashions. The surrealist visuals of “Wuthering Heights” paired with its over-the-top eroticism may reach this level of artistic success, entering a dialogue with the original text and revealing themes of sexual repression and female empowerment. Watching the trailer is an experience both uncomfortable and intriguing, suggesting that Fennell may know what she’s doing.

Or it could be nothing more than a blatant cash grab, mushing the famous novel with risque sex scenes to draw more numbers at the box office. Who can say — for now?

—Staff writer Laura B. Martens can be reached at laura.martens@thecrimson.com.