Will ‘Wuthering Heights’ Bring Box Office Glory For Jacob Elordi-Margot Robbie? $70m Projections Raise Expectations

Warner Bros’ "Wuthering Heights", starring Jacob Elordi and Margot Robbie, hits theaters this Friday and already looks like the weekend’s big box office favorite. The studio expects to pull in $70 million to $80 million worldwide over the four-day Presidents Day stretch. Fans are watching to see if those numbers hold up, especially with new family flicks and thrillers also crowding theaters.

A little background: Emerald Fennell directs this one, taking on Emily Brontë’s classic novel. It’s her first big studio release since she won an Oscar for "Promising Young Woman". Warner Bros grabbed the rights for $80 million, outbidding Netflix.
 

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The cast is a big draw: “Euphoria” and “Frankenstein” star Jacob Elordi steps into Heathcliff’s shoes, while Robbie plays Catherine Earnshaw. Elordi’s still riding the wave from his Best Supporting Actor nomination for Frankenstein, which drops the same weekend. Critics seem on board, Wuthering Heights sits at 81% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Box office projections have the film earning $40 million to $50 million domestically from 3,600 U.S. theaters over Presidents Day. Add in another $30 million from international markets, 11,600 screens in 79 countries and you are looking at a strong start. Previews kick off Thursday at 2 p.m. and early UK showings already brought in $1.8 million.

This movie clearly targets women and last weekend’s previews helped build some buzz. UK audiences showed up, too, with that $1.8 million haul.

But it’s not alone. Amazon MGM’s "Crime 101," starring Chris Hemsworth and Mark Ruffalo, aims for $15 million domestically from 3,000 theaters. It’s an R-rated noir thriller, mostly meant for men over 25 and it also debuts in 60 international markets.

So you’ve got three films, each going after a different crowd, "Wuthering Heights" for women, family movies and Crime 101 for guys 25 and up. Altogether, the top three could pull in around $85 million domestically over the long weekend. For comparison, last year’s Presidents Day haul was $179.5 million, led by "Captain America: Brave New World."

This weekend really marks the start of 2026’s box office race after a few quieter animated openings, Disney’s "Elio" at $20.8 million, DreamWorks’ "The Bad Guys" at $23.9 million. 

"Wuthering Heights" is the first real test to see if star power and strong reviews can bring crowds back. Pre-sales and Thursday night previews will give us an early read on just how big this could get.

With a global rollout and a lot riding on its performance, "Wuthering Heights" could set the tone for the rest of the year’s studio releases.