PS You're Wrong: A Pop Culture Podcast · Shelby and Matt

Wuthering Heights (Episode 325)

February 19, 2026·1 hr 17 min·20 clips

Shelby opens by saying this is exactly the kind of messy project she wanted to see. Matt is along for the ride as they frame Emerald Fennell’s *Wuthering Heights* as controversial and messy right away. Shelby is clear that she is not a fan of the book and does not hold it especially dear, which makes the whole thing feel freer to her. The two of them keep circling Fennell’s aesthetic, her lens, and whether the film is doing something interesting or just stirring the pot. They spend a long stretch on Catherine and Heathcliff. The sex scenes become part of the discussion, along with the question of how much is happening on screen versus what is only implied. The pregnancy question turns into the central obsession. Shelby keeps asking why the character never seems visibly pregnant if the story is treating the pregnancy as such a major engine. Matt slows that down with timeline logic, walking through missed periods, weeks, and when people usually start to show. Corsets come up as one reason the figure may be harder to read, and they debate how much a film should care about the minutiae of a body in the frame. From there, they keep pushing on the visuals. There is talk of a possible baby bump, the long stretch where she is supposedly pregnant, and the comparison to another actress filming while pregnant without anyone noticing. The exchange stays playful, but it is really about how literal a film needs to be. Shelby wants more legibility. Matt is more willing to accept ambiguity as part of the bit. As the discussion goes on, they get into the aftermath of the pregnancy and the way the character is confined to bed. Isabella’s arrival, the garden chaining, and the billowy nightgowns all get folded into the same thread of absurdity. They do not treat any of it as neat melodrama. They treat it like a sequence of choices that are either wild, sloppy, or weirdly compelling depending on the moment. Shelby keeps calling Fennell her kind of messy. Matt keeps the skepticism alive without killing the fun. The last stretch loosens up further. They start talking about what comes next on their calendar, including a possible sequel to a Christian film, *Good Luck Have Fun Don't Die*, *Goat*, film rankings for 2023, the Oscars, and talking about *Frankenstein* again. The episode closes with the familiar sign-off and the promise of being back next week.

As heard by us

A messy adaptation debate that stays funny, skeptical, and a little unruly.

Shelby and Matt spend this episode on Emerald Fennell's controversial Wuthering Heights, and the draw is hearing them test its mess against their own instincts.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

If you want to hear two people pick apart a famously messy Wuthering Heights adaptation.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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