If you’ve spent any time on the internet lately, you know there are three certainties in life: taxes, your phone battery dying at the worst moment, and the collective internet losing its absolute marbles over Jacob Elordi. Whether he’s carrying a tiny designer bag, towering over his co-stars, or just… existing in a scarf, the man has a grip on our social media feeds that should probably be studied by scientists.
But hold onto your vintage paperbacks, because the internet’s favorite Australian export is about to enter his “brooding literary hero” era, and the reaction is exactly as chaotic as you’d expect.
The News That Set the Timeline on Fire
In case you missed the memo that sent every English major into a tailspin, Elordi has officially been cast as the legendary Heathcliff in Emerald Fennell’s upcoming adaptation of Wuthering Heights. And he’s not going it alone; he’s starring alongside everyone’s favorite Barbie, Margot Robbie, who will be taking on the role of Catherine Earnshaw.
It’s the casting news that literally nobody saw coming, but everyone is suddenly obsessed with. We’re talking about two of the biggest stars on the planet taking on one of the most toxic, dramatic, and “I-will-haunt-you-forever” romances in the history of literature. If you thought the tension in Saltburn was a lot, you might want to start practicing some deep breathing exercises now.
Why Jacob Elordi as Heathcliff is Giving Everyone “The Vapors”
Let’s be real: Heathcliff is the ultimate “I can fix him” character. He’s moody, he’s revenge-driven, and he spends a lot of time staring intensely at the moors. It’s a role that requires a very specific brand of “dangerous but make it fashion,” and fans are already convinced that Jacob is the man for the job.
As soon as the news broke, social media transformed into a giant digital fan club. The consensus? It’s not just that he’s tall (though, let’s be honest, the 6’5” frame definitely helps the “imposing figure” vibe). Fans are calling him “classically hot,” noting that he has that old-school movie star energy that feels like a throwback to a different era of Hollywood.
One fan put it quite bluntly, admitting the casting news basically ruined their productivity for the day: “It made me come undone,” they shared, echoing a sentiment that thousands of others apparently felt in their souls. It’s not just “he’s cute” energy—it’s “I need to go lay down in a dark room and process this” energy.
The Emerald Fennell Connection
To understand why this is such a big deal, you have to look at the woman behind the camera. Emerald Fennell is the mastermind who gave us the neon-soaked revenge of Promising Young Womanand the “I’ll never look at a bathtub the same way” madness of Saltburn.
Fennell and Elordi already proved they are a match made in cinematic heaven (or hell, depending on how much Saltburn traumatized you). By reuniting for Wuthering Heights, they are signaling that this isn’t going to be your grandma’s dusty period piece. This is likely going to be stylish, visceral, and incredibly intense. When you add Margot Robbie into that mix—an actress who can go from “Plastic Perfection” to “Unhinged Genius” in a heartbeat—you have the recipe for a movie that will dominate the conversation for the next two years.
A Brief History of the Elordi Takeover
Photograph by Eddy Chen/HBO
For those who have been living under a rock (or just haven’t been on TikTok since 2018), Jacob Elordi’s rise to “Internet Boyfriend” status has been meteoric.
The Kissing Booth Era: We saw him as the quintessential high school heartthrob.
The Euphoria Era: He pivoted to playing Nate Jacobs, the villain we all loved to hate (and feared deeply).
The Priscilla Era: He stepped into the blue suede shoes of Elvis Presley, proving he could handle the weight of an icon.
The Saltburn Era: He became the personification of “old money aesthetic” and solidified his status as a fashion icon.
And now? The Gothic Romance Era. He’s moving from the hills of Hollywood to the moors of Yorkshire, and the transition feels weirdly natural. There’s something about his ability to look like he’s perpetually thinking about something very sad and very deep that just screams Wuthering Heights.
What North American Fans Are Saying
Across the US and Canada, the reaction has been a mix of literary purists debating the casting and Gen Z-ers who are just happy to see more of Jacob on their screens. In NYC and Toronto, where the “dark academia” aesthetic is basically a lifestyle, the hype is reaching fever pitch. People are already planning their “Heathcliff-core” outfits—think heavy wool coats, messy hair, and an expression that says, “I have been walking in the rain for three hours.”
The “classically hot” label is sticking, too. In an era of “babygirl” men and “soft boy” aesthetics, Elordi represents a return to that rugged, brooding leading man that Hollywood used to churn out in the 1940s. He’s the guy who looks like he belongs on a black-and-white poster in a college dorm room, right next to James Dean.
Is the Internet Too Thirsty? (Probably, But We’re Here For It)
Of course, it wouldn’t be a celebrity news cycle without a little bit of healthy obsession. The “hot and bothered” comments are flying thick and fast. It seems like every time a new photo of Jacob surfaces—whether he’s on a film set or just grabbing a matcha—the internet collectively loses its ability to form coherent sentences.
Is it a bit dramatic? Yes. Is it relatable? Also yes. In a world that feels increasingly stressful, sometimes you just want to focus on a very tall Australian man playing a very dramatic fictional character in a very beautiful movie.
Why This Version of Wuthering Heights Will Be Different
Wuthering Heights has been adapted many times before. We’ve seen the 1939 classic, the 1992 version with Ralph Fiennes, and the 2011 version with Tom Hardy. But the Fennell/Robbie/Elordi trio brings a certain “cool factor” that the story hasn’t seen in decades. It’s taking a classic that many people were forced to read in high school and making it feel like the most anticipated event of the summer.
Fans are already speculating on the chemistry between Margot and Jacob. Will they be able to capture the toxic, all-consuming obsession of Cathy and Heathcliff? Given their track records, the answer is a resounding “probably.”
The Bottom Line
We are officially living in Jacob Elordi’s world, and we’re all just paying rent. Between his fashion choices, his choice of roles, and his ability to make a simple casting announcement feel like a global event, he’s cemented his place as the definitive leading man of the 2020s.
Whether you’re a die-hard Brontë fan or you just like looking at pretty people in period costumes, Wuthering Heights is officially the movie to watch. Just make sure you’re prepared to “come undone” along with the rest of the internet when the first trailer finally drops.
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