Wuthering Heights Might Have Gone Mad With Influencers and People Are Noticing

“Journalism is Fucked and We’re All Doomed” is my ongoing column looking at issues affecting entertainment journalism writers.

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Wuthering Heights had their global premiere on Wednesday night and, no, I wasn't invited. (The thing about no longer working for a trade publication is your Q rating for those kind of things plummets.) But you know who was invited? Influencers! Lots of em. And, weirdly enough a lot of nepo babies which...is that a Jacob Elordi thing?

We've talked about premieres and junkets becoming exclusive to online personalities at the expense of critics for over a year now. But what was funny is how quickly social media seemed to notice with Wuthering Heights. This wasn't helped by the social embargo lifting and, at last count, the Wuthering Heights social channel has only shared two actual posts from critics Jazz Tangcay of Variety and Scott Mendelson. A People article rounding up reactions found a whopping four critic takes– including the aforementioned Variety one--though none appeared to be premiere reactions but pre-planned posts for when the embargo lifted.

Influencers have been a little extra with the movie since Wednesday night, using language about how it killed and destroyed them, as if they themselves were Catherine on the Moors. Vogue went so far as to publish a piece by influencer Eileen Kelly (who apparently works for them now because....Vogue is going through it) talking about how the experience moved her and left her a sobbing wreck. And with absolutely zero negative, or even mid, takes to counterbalance there's been an air of dismissiveness to the whole movie.

The problem remains what it's always been: influencers are sponsored content in living form. The average Joe already knows the quid pro quo of their relationship with studios, and yet studios assume people don't. And what's bizarre is that in most spon-con situations influencers will disclose something is an ad. But when it's a visit to a premiere there's no such declaration. An influencer might say "[Studio] was kind enough to invite me" but never list whether elements like travel or accommodations were comped which, in many cases, they are.

I said before in my 2024 piece on this happening during the Wicked premiere: ...influencers are the new celebrities. It brings me back to a previous article I penned about The Hollywood Reporter’s 'new A-list.' As I said in that piece, "...'it isn’t just that content creators are popular. It’s that publicists, studios and the other Hollywood power brokers out there are seeing their opinions — and that’s what they are at the end of the day — over film journalists actually trying to do their jobs.'” The problem is that influencers, like The Blob, are slowly starting to encompass everything in one: celebrity, journalist, marketer, and the boundaries are all but eradicated.

But there does seem to be a turning tide, maybe enhanced by our current political climate where the language is so big and extra every single day. People are desperate for critical, honest opinion. I've had several people ask me directly what I thought about Wuthering Heights and I've admitted: I haven't seen the movie yet. I tried to get into the junket and was passed over so no early movie for me. Influencer opinions do come with an air of dubiousness for people today because of how positive they are.

Interestingly, influencer Cocomoecoe, yes the same one as that "are influencers a necessary evil" post, who was invited to the premiere, made a point of emphasizing how "honest" her four-paragraph review was. Outside of it being more of a Yelp post, it's weird that she cited it as being honest when there's absolutely nothing critical about it.

But that is the fundamental flaw with influencer culture: they only know how to sell, not the background of any of the other jobs they've been gifted, and honesty is defined as giving no real opinion for fear of being critical. No one wants to look a gifthorse in the mouth and when said gifthorse is paying your bills that's doubly paramount. However, influencers going to these events aren't being transparent about the perks they're getting, instead selling a belief (and lying to themselves) that they're doing actual journalistic or entertainment work. Meanwhile, actual entertainment journalists are jumping ship and continuing to fight for the few scraps they can to maintain relevance and access.

At the end of the day, would I have loved to go to the Wuthering Heights premiere? Sure! I'm rereading the book now (my favorite) and I would have loved to have been part of that community. Would being invited to said premiere have affected my review? Not one bit! I've gone to premieres and then said the movie isn't good. One doesn't, and shouldn't, affect the other. But, let's be real, studios want butts in seats and continue to believe influencers will get people (specifically the young) in there. And premieres are slowly transforming back into the exclusive enclave of those they deem cool, which right now is celebrities.

Influencers are celebrities. Let's keep saying that! And, as celebrities, their opinions will always be bought and paid for.