Released four years after Snow White and the Huntsman, 2016’s The Huntsman: Winter’s War continued reinterpreting the fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm with an even bigger cast. While the first movie revolved around Snow White and the huntsman Eric’s efforts at defeating the evil queen Ravenna, The Huntsman: Winter’s War takes place both before and after this battle. This time around, Eric’s origins in another Queen’s army along with his forbidden romance with a fellow warrior are also touched upon. The ambitious fairy tale epic was directed by the first movie’s visual effects supervisor Cedric Nicolas-Troyan and written by The Last of Us and Chernobyl’s Craig Mazin.
While Kirsten Stewart didn’t return as Snow White, The Huntsman: Winter’s War found Chris Hemsworth reprising his role as Eric and Charlize Theron returning as the vicious monarch standing in Eric’s way. But these two aren’t the only Hollywood A-listers in the movie as it also goes on to feature the likes of Jessica Chastain and Emily Blunt. Despite its star-studded ensemble, The Huntsman: Winter’s War unfortunately received mixed reviews and bombed at the box office. Still, it was the visual elements, Halsey’s original song “Castle” and ultimately the acting performances that redeemed the fantasy action-adventure movie and earned it six Teen Choice Awards nominations along the way. Here's the cast of characters in The Huntsman: Winter's War.
Chris Hemsworth As Eric
Before he became the so-called Huntsman, Eric was a loyal and valiant member of the army of the Ice Queen Freya. However, he decides to go against the Queen when he witnesses her evil nature. The character’s personality stems directly from the original Huntsman in the Grimm Brothers’ Snow White in which he intentionally spares the titular heroine’s life violating the royal orders that he received. Leading The Huntsman: Winter’s War cast, Chris Hemsworth is no stranger to playing such morally righteous characters as is evidenced by his performances as the Asgardian thunder god Thor in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the dutiful mercenary Tyler Rake in the Extraction franchise.
Charlize Theron As Queen Ravenna
The evil sorceress Queen Ravenna was killed off at the end of Snow White and the Huntsman but she gets resurrected in the sequel. Simply referred to as the Wicked Queen in the Grimms’ original German fairy tale, Charlize Theron perfectly channels the charmingly deceitful nature of the villain. The Huntsman: Winter’s War is just one of the many Charlize Theron-led action movies. After critically-acclaimed performances like her Oscar-winning portrayal of serial killer Aileen Wuornos in Monster, the actress rebranded herself as an action star with roles like renegade war captain Furiousa in Mad Max: Fury Road and the Cold War-era MI6 agent Lorraine Broughton in Atomic Blonde.
Emily Blunt As Queen Freya
The literary lore in The Huntsman: Winter’s War goes beyond the Grimm Brothers as it also incorporates Danish author Hans Christian Andersen’s The Snow Queen. With the queen getting a name in The Huntsman: Winter’s War, Freya retains the source material’s crux as she too wantonly punishes people by subjecting them to a state of permafrost. Revealed to be Ravenna’s sister, Emily Blunt stars as Freya with her other fantasy genre roles being the stern but caring nanny Mary Poppins in Mary Poppins Returns and the friendly Baker’s wife in Into The Woods. Blunt also led the horror A Quiet Place and its sequel as the survivalist mother Evelyn Abbott.
Jessica Chastain As Sara
Eric’s wife Sara is a new character and isn’t borrowed from any fairytale traditions. While she is a fellow warrior in Freya’s forces, she too shares the same righteousness as Eric whom she later married. Throughout The Huntsman: Winter’s War, Sara proves her courage by leading the dwarves in battle and waging war against Freya. Oscar-winner Jessica Chastain joins The Huntsman: Winter’s War cast as Sara, one of the few fantasy roles in her acclaimed career. Jessica Chastain's best roles include the traumatized fashion designer Beverly Marsh in It Chapter 2, the passionate NASA scientist Murph Cooper in Interstellar and the indomitable CIA analyst Maya Harris in Zero Dark Thirty.
Nick Frost As Nion
The Seven Dwarfs have been an integral part of Snow White ever since it was first published in the 19th century, The names of these dwarves have, however, been reinterpreted in different takes of the story. Nion is one of the the seven who returns in The Huntsman: Winter’s War to provide his strategic expertise and brute strength on the battlefield. The character is portrayed by Nick Frost who is best known for his involvement in Edgar Wright’s Three Flavors Cornetto trilogy, playing slacker-turned zombie Ed in Shaun of the Dead, bumbling Police Constable Danny Butterman in Hot Fuzz and teetotaling lawyer Andy Knightley in The World’s End.
Sam Claflin As King William
Sam Claflin is one of the returning stars in The Huntsman: Winter’s War cast, reprising his role as King William, the respected monarch of Tabor. Given his romantic involvement with Snow White, King William is an obvious stand-in for Prince Charming from the story’s German source material. Claflin made his big screen debut in Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides as the adventurous missionary Philip Swift. He went on to play the charming District 4 tribute Finnick Odair in the Hunger Games franchise and the brash and self-obsessed detective Mycroft Holmes in Enola Holmes. The actor also had a stint on Peaky Blinders as infamous fascist politician Oswald Mosley.
The Huntsman: Winter’s War Supporting Cast & Characters
Rob Brydon as Gryff: Nion’s half-brother is one of the dwarves who fight Ravenna and Freya’s forces. The debt-collecting dwarf is yet again inspired by one of the original seven dwarves in the Grimm fairy tale. He is played by Welsh actor-comedian Rob Brydon who appeared as a fictionalized version of himself alongside Steve Coogan in the TV series The Trip and its movie spin-offs.
Sheridan Smith as Bromwyn: Bromwyn is another dwarf who is allied to Nion and is characterized by his endless greed for money. The dwarf is played by Sheridan Smith who is best known for playing the late British journalist Lisa Lynch in the drama series The C Word. She also starred in the thriller Tower Block as Becky, a diligent office worker who is targeted by an unknown sniper.
Alexandra Roach as Doreena: Nion’s romantic interest Doreena is portrayed by Alexandra Roach who played a comatose woman named Carrie in the Black Mirror episode “Black Museum” and the antagonistic assassin Rhian Bevan in Killing Eve.
Sope Dirisu as Tull: Tull is one of Freya’s warriors who once fought alongside Eric. He is played by Sope Dirisu who is known for playing undercover police officer Elliot Carter in Gangs of London.
Sophie Cookson as Pippa: Another one of the warriors fighting under Freya, Pippa is played by Sophie Cookson who played secret agent Roxy Morton (codenamed Lancelot) the Kingsman franchise and real-life scandalous model Christine Keeler in the miniseries The Trial of Christine Keeler.
Sam Hazeldine as Liefr: The Huntsman: Winter’s War cast includes another Peaky Blinders actor as Sam Hazeldine plays Freya’s warrior Liefr. In Peaky Blinders, Hazeldine played Georgie Sewell, a gangster who becomes the right-hand man of Italian mob boss Darby Sabini.
Colin Morgan as Andrew: Freya’s lover Andrew is played by Colin Morgan whose run-ins with the fantasy genre go all the way back to his lead role in Merlin. Having played the mythical wizard Merlin in the British fantasy series, Morgan also starred in the sci-fi series Humans as half-robot half-human fugitive Leo Elster.
Liam Neeson as Narrator: The uncredited narrator of The Huntsman: Winter’s War is none other than Oscar nominee and action star Liam Neeson. The Northern Irish actor is known for playing real-life German industrialist Oskar Schindler in Schindler’s List and the retired CIA operative Bryan Mills in the Taken franchise.
Robert Portal as the King: Ravenna’s husband is an unnamed king who is shown to rule over an unspecified kingdom. This character is played by Robert Portal who played yet another royal in 2020, starring in the historical drama Belgravia as the Duke of Richmond.
Fred Tatasciore as Mirror Man: The magical mirror on the wall from the original Snow White story also makes an appearance with its physical manifestation voiced by Fred Tatasciore in The Huntsman: Winter’s War. A voice acting veteran, Tatasciore voiced the hot-headed outlaw Yosemite Sam in several Looney Tunes productions and the mentally-unstable superhero Hulk in various Marvel animated shows. With his deep and impactful tones, Tatasciore is considered to be one of the most prolific voice actors in animation.