The fairest of them all

On the left, we have Lily Collins as the dwarf-charming princess. The actress called her character ‘a joyful person who lights up a room and maintains grace at all times.’

On the right, consider Kristen Stewart’s darker shade of White, clad in a coat of armour and carrying a shield and sword for Snow White and the Huntsman. ‘It's not a little girl sitting by a well with little tweety-birds,’ director Rupert Sanders said.

The two retellings of the classic Disney story boast high-powered casts and divergent approaches. For Sanders’ film, Stewart is joined by Charlize Theron as a self-described ‘serial killer’ of a Queen. Producer Joe Roth told an audience at Comic-Con in California this weekend that his version is more Lord of the Rings, less Disney. That project starts shooting in the UK this week for a June 2012 release.

The competing Snow White production, starring Collins, also features Julia Roberts as an insidiously passive-aggressive Queen and The Social Network’s Armie Hammer as the Prince. Expect to see it in theatres in March next year.

Which do you prefer—Collins’s sweetness and light, or Stewart’s battle-maiden glare?