Kristin Kreuk

A strikingly beautiful brunette hailing from Vancouver who simultaneously starred on two series lensed in her hometown, actress Kristin Kreuk was filling out college applications when an advisor gave some excellent guidance and suggested the young woman try out for the locally-produced teen soap "Edgemont". A CBC production that aired on Fox Family Channel in the USA, "Edgemont" was a thoughtful series that, uncharacteristically for youth-aimed drama, hit home far more often than it missed its mark. Kreuk played Laurel, a sweet and sophisticated Torontonian who has a hard time adjusting to her new suburban life, especially in her high school, where her urban roots lead to presumptions of sexual promiscuity. Her close friendship and subsequent unwitting seduction of the male half of the school's golden couple certainly didn't help her cause, but Kreuk's soft-spoken but strong performance as the character brought out Laurel's sincerity and smarts and made her hard to root against.

Kreuk was next cast as Lana Lang opposite Tom Welling's Clark Kent in The WB series "Smallville" (2001- ), the two making a couple so uncommonly appealing that the drama surrounding the star-crossed nature of their relationship was heightened. Again she played a smart beauty and though here her character was orphaned thanks to the freak meteor shower that brought Clark to Earth, she was an amazingly well-adjusted and understandably popular high school student with a heart of gold.

Her dark-hair, doll-like features and perfect rosy skin matched with her glowing presence and made her a perfect candidate to play the title role in the 2002 ABC "The Wonderful World of Disney" live-action presentation "Snow White: The Fairest of Them All".