Charli xcx has released House, the first track from her upcoming album written for Emerald Fennell’s adaptation of Wuthering Heights.
The film stars Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi and is expected to premiere in 2026.
The song was co-written with Finn Keane and features a spoken-word contribution from Velvet Underground co-founder John Cale.
Charli said the collaboration was inspired by Cale’s description of music needing to be “elegant and brutal,” a phrase she revisited while working on the soundtrack.
Charli began writing music for the film after being approached by Fennell in late 2024. She described the project as a creative departure from her previous album, Brat, and said the new material reflects the emotional intensity and bleak atmosphere of the source material.
House is the first preview of a full-length album that Charli has written for the film. A music video directed by Mitch Ryan accompanies the release.
In addition to her music, Charli is expanding her work in film. She will star in A24’s The Moment, based on her original concept and directed by Aidan Zamiri. The project is the first co-production from her new venture, studio365.
Charli is also set to appear in several upcoming films, including Daniel Goldhaber’s Faces of Death remake, Greg Araki’s I Want Your Sex, Cathy Yan’s The Gallerist, Julia Jackman’s 100 Nights Of Hero, Romain Gavras’ Sacrifice, and Pete Ohs’ Erupcja.
In a lengthy statement regarding the project, the Apple hitmaker said: “I got a call from Emerald Fennell last Christmas asking whether I would consider working on a song for her adaptation of Wuthering Heights. I read the script and immediately felt inspired so Finn Keane and I began working on not just one but many songs that we felt connected to the world she was creating. After being so in the depths of my previous album, I was excited to escape into something entirely new, entirely opposite. When I think of Wuthering Heights, I think of many things. I think of passion and pain. I think of England. I think of the Moors, I think of the mud and the cold. I think of determination and grit.”
On being a huge fan of The Velvet Underground, she continued: “A few years ago, I watched Todd Haynes’ documentary about The Velvet Underground. As many of you know I’m a huge fan of the band and was really taken by the documentary. One thing that stuck with me was how John Cale described a key sonic requirement of The Velvet Underground. That any song had to be both “elegant and brutal”. I got really stuck on that phrase. I write it down on my notes app and would pull it up from time to time and think about what he meant.
“When working on music for this film, “elegant and brutal” was a phrase I kept coming back to. One day, whilst on tour in Austin, Finn and I went to the studio and wrote the bones for a song that would eventually become House. When the summer ended, I was still ruminating on John’s words. So I decided to reach out to him to get his opinion on the songs that his phrase had so deeply inspired, but also to see whether he might want to collaborate on any.”
Charli was reduced to tears listening to Cale’s contribution.
She added: “We got connected, we spoke on the phone and wow… that voice, so elegant, so brutal. I sent him some songs and we started talking specifically about House. We spoke about the idea of a poem. He recorded something and sent it to me. Something that only John could do. And it was… well, it made my cry.
“I feel so lucky to have been able to work with John on this song. I’ve been so excited to share it with you all, sitting quietly in anticipation.
“Love you all, let’s fall in love again and again 3.”
