Gemma Arterton had her big moment last fall, when she popped up briefly as Bond girl Strawberry Fields in Quantum of Solace before getting axed in the name of a giant red herring. But she's about to get a whole lot more screentime, playing tortured young Cathy opposite Gossip Girl star Ed Westwick's Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights, an adaptation of the classic Emily Bronte novel.
THR is reporting that Peter Webber, who made the period piece Girl WIth a Pearl Earring, will direct the script by Olivia Hetreed. Arterton and Westwick are both replacing former cast members Natalie Portman and Michael Fassbender, who bounced out about a year ago. The idea here is to get away from "stuffy costume drama," which probably won't be hard with Westwick, a popular TV star, on board. Joe Wright breathed new life into Jane Austen with Pride & Prejudice. We'll see what Webber can do for Bronte.
