Kristen Stewart and director Rupert Sanders’ absence from the Snow White sequel sparked rumors that it had to do with their alleged affair.

Kristen Stewart shared that her absence from the Snow White sequel had nothing to do with her personal troubles.

She shared that she had read a few scripts for the sequel but wasn’t happy with any of them before Universal moved on without her.
Stewart was allegedly involved in an affair with Snow White director Rupert Sanders which caused massive media backlash.

Kristen Stewart made headlines right after her Twilight fame when she was caught cheating on Robert Pattinson with director Rupert Sanders. A photo of them kissing was released to widespread criticism from her fans. Stewart and Sanders met during the film, Snow White and the Huntsman. When Stewart did not return for the sequel The Huntsman: Winter’s War, many speculated that Universal let go of her after the cheating scandal.

Kristen Stewart in a still from Snow White and the Huntsman | Credits: Universal Pictures

Interestingly, the Personal Shopper actress later revealed that the cheating scandal had nothing to do with her not returning to the sequel film. She shared that she was involved in talks about a sequel for months, but she did not find anything good. Universal moved forward with the sequel with Chris Hemsworth and Stewart got to know about it only later.

Kristen Stewart’s Cheating Scandal Had Nothing to Do With Her Absence in the Snow White Sequel

Kristen Stewart in Snow White and the Huntsman | Credits: Universal Pictures

Kristen Stewart played the titular character in the 2012 film, Snow White and the Huntsman. The film was a box office success, having made nearly $400 million against its $170 million budget (via Box Office Mojo). The film also had an ensemble cast of Chris Hemsworth, Charlize Theron, and Sam Claflin. The film’s visual effects and costumes earned critical praise as well as Oscar nominations for the respective departments.

When a sequel was released four years later, both Stewart and director Rupert Sanders were absent from the film. The Huntsman: Winter’s War was directed by Cedric Nicolas-Troyan, who was the visual effects supervisor of the first film. All other main cast members also returned to this film. Many speculated that the affair allegations against Stewart and Sanders were the reason for their exit.

However, in a Variety cover story, Stewart revealed that her personal troubles had nothing to do with her absence. In fact, she was involved in the sequel discussions for months. But Stewart revealed that she couldn’t find anything “greenlight-able” among the few scripts she had read. She shared with Variety:

I read a few scripts. None of them were good. None of them were greenlight-able. And I had a meeting with Universal about the places where the story could go. Maybe Chris was more into it. I actually don’t f**king know. It wasn’t a situation where I got kicked off a movie because I got in trouble. We had been in talks months after that about making something work, and it never came together.

Interestingly, Universal didn’t inform her when a script was finally approved and put into production. She learned about the sequel from a press release, sharing, “I was like, ‘OK, cool.’ We hadn’t spoken in a long time, but I didn’t know we had broken up.” However, the studio reached out to her for a cameo role which she had to decline.

The sequel did not have the magic elements of the first film and was deemed a box office disaster. It grossed $165 million against a budget of $115 million (via Box Office Mojo).

The Kristen Stewart-Rupert Sanders Affair Caused a Lot of Emotional Stress to the Actress

Kristen Stewart in Snow White and the Huntsman | Credits: Universal Pictures

While working on their film Twilight, Kristen Stewart and co-star Robert Pattinson became romantically linked. The rumored romance had a huge fanbase at the time. It came as a shock to fans of both actors when Stewart was photographed kissing director Rupert Sanders, revealing an affair between them. Sanders was 19 years older than Stewart.

It caused a huge media backlash against the actress. She shared a public apology to Pattinson. She shared (via People):

I’m deeply sorry for the hurt and embarrassment I’ve caused to those close to me and everyone this has affected. This momentary indiscretion has jeopardized the most important thing in my life, the person I love and respect the most, Rob. I love him, I love him, I’m so sorry.

Later, during an interview with Marie Claire, Stewart shared that the affair happened during a “really traumatic period in my early 20s.”

Snow White and the Huntsman is now available for streaming on AppleTV.