Three years ago, Universal released the fantasy adventure Snow White and the Huntsman with Kristen Stewart playing the fairytale heroine but the film ended up with mixed reviews.

But instead of opting to make a follow-up, the studio have made the bizarre decision to produce a prequel which focuses on the origins of the heroic Huntsman  and the sinister Queen Ravenna.

Chris Hemsworth (Rush, Avengers: Age of Ultron) and Oscar-winner Charlize Theron (Monster, Mad Max: Fury Road) are back as those respective characters alongside two prestige female stars in The Huntsman: Winter’s War.

The film’s official trailer has premiered online.

Directed by Cedric Nicolas-Troyan (visual effects supervisor on the original), the film sees the Huntsman joining forces with a female warrior as the pair look to confront Queen Ravenna and her younger sister, Freya a.k.a the Ice Queen.

Making a rare appearance in a mainstream blockbuster, the Cinematic Critique’s favourite actress Jessica Chastain (The Help, Zero Dark Thirty, The Martian) features as Sara, the feisty warrior who is also the love interest of the Huntsman.

British actress Emily Blunt (Edge of Tomorrow, Sicario) also stars in the film as the ‘icy’ Freya, whose devious side is shown in the preview.

Additional acting support coming from Sam Claflin (Love, Rosie, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay), Sophie Cookson (Kingsman: The Secret Service), Sheridan Smith (The Royle Family, Cilla), Nick Frost (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz), Rob Brydon (Gavin and Stacey, Cinderella) and Alexandra Roach (The Iron Lady, One Chance).

However there will be no appearance from Kristen Stewart as Snow White. She was caught up in controversy when she and original director Rupert Sanders were alleged to have had an affair during filming of the first film.

In the meantime, The Huntsman: Winter’s War will be released in the UK on April 22nd 2016.