Dakota Fanning biography, age, sister, twilight, boyfriend, photos as a kid, height 2025

Biography of Dakota Fanning

Dakota Fanning is an American actress who made her acting debut at the age of six and became famous for the lead in the drama «I Am Sam». She is also famous for such pictures as «Hounddog», three films of «The Twilight Saga», the TV show «The Alienist» and others.

Childhood and Family

Dakota was born into a family of athletes on February 23, 1994. Her father, Steve Fanning, played for St. Louis Cardinals, a basketball team from the Little League. When he retired from sports, he took the job of a salesman in an electronics store. Her mother, Heather Joy, was a professional tennis player. Her grandfather on the mother’s side, Rick Arrington, was a quarterback of the Philadelphia Eagles football team.

Dakota has a sister, Elle Fanning, who 4 years her junior and who is also an actress. In their genealogy, there are Irish and German roots. They both, like the whole Fanning’s family, are Baptists.

Sisters Dakota and Elle Fanning Then and Now

She had the makings of a model from the day she was born. First Dakota’s memoirs: When they were visiting her aunty, she put on her high heels and fell. But still, according to her relatives, the girl didn’t take them off until it was time to go home.

Shortly, Dakota started to attend acting courses for children, and in the age of 5, she acted in her first commercial - a commercial about washing powder Tide. This charming little girl who ecstatically stained her dress was destined to be a big star. Later, she appeared in many different commercials, including the lottery commercial of Georgia in 2000 in which she acted with a legendary Ray Charles.

Dakota Fanning in Tide Commercial

First Roles

Since 2000, Dakota has regularly appeared in commercials and TV shows alike. She appeared in «Emergency Room», «Spin City», «The Ellen Show», «Ally McBeal». She received only bit parts, but it was an invaluable experience. The most remarkable shooting for her was the shooting of «Emergency Room». She played a car accident victim who also had leukemia. The shooting of episodes with Dakota has been lasting for 2 days during which she had to wear a cervical collar and walk around with tubes in her nose.

A Frame from the TV Show «Emergency Room»

In 2001, the girl played a daughter of Sean Penn’s character in the drama «I Am Sam». The touching film told a story of a mentally retarded man who raised a «normal» daughter alone and fought for the right to be with her. For this role, the 7-year-old Dakota Fanning was nominated for Screen Actors Guild award. She became the youngest actress in the history who received this award.

»I Am Sam»: Dakota Fanning’s First Big Role

In 2002, Steven Spielberg himself chose Dakota for his science fiction TV show «Taken». In the same year, the young actress appeared in three feature films. She played a kidnapped victim in the action film «Trapped», then, she played a young Reese Witherspoon’s character in the film «Sweet Home Alabama», and later she received a bit part in the screen version of the fairy tale «Hansel and Grettel».

The next year was memorable for the girl by filming the melodrama «Uptown Girls» where she played with Brittany Murphy who played a nanny of Dakota’s character who was very mature for her age, and by playing the children’s lead in the cartoon «The Cat in the Hat» based on Dr. Seuss’s cartoon. In the same year, together with her sister, she voiced the main characters of the English version anime «My Neighbor Totoro» by Hayao Miyazaki.

A Frame from the Film «The Cat in the Hat»

According to Zoomboola.com, in 2004, the girl appeared in the 10th season of the cult sitcom «Friends». In one of the last episodes, she played a cute girl Mackenzie who lived in a house that Monica and Chandler wanted to buy.

Her professionalism was becoming more apparent, and she started to get more serious roles and big-name partners. Thus, in 2004, she played with Denzel Washington in the film «Man on Fire» in which she again played a kidnapped girl whose bodyguard had to take her away from a Mexican drug cartel.

»Man on Fire»: Dakota Fanning and Denzel Washington

In 2005, for the first time, she played with Robert De Niro in the thriller «Hide and Seek» and with Kurt Russell in the family drama «Dreamer». In the same year, she gave her voice to Lilo from the Disney cartoon «Lilo & Stitch» and appeared in the thriller «War of the Worlds» by Steven Spielberg as a daughter of Tom Cruise’s character who together with her family tried to rescue from the alien invasion.

All Episodes from «War of the Worlds» where Dakota Fanning Screams

During that period she has also played in one scene with an actress Glenn Close in the film «Nine Lives». «It’s obvious that someone great reincarnated into this girl», these are the words of Dakota’s partner about her.

Flourishing in Career

In 2007, the drama «Hounddog» starring Dakota was released. The audience believes that that moment was the start of her «mature» career. After release, the picture «Hounddog» faced slashing criticism for the rape scene of Fanning’s character. «But it’s the filming it’s not real. It’s called acting», the actress tried to explain to all critics. Despite the fact that the picture was the box-office flop, a critic Roger Ebert mentioned Dakota’s acting. He compared Fanning to a young Jodie Foster in the film «Taxi Driver» by Martin Scorsese.

By that time, the girl has had 4 million dollars on her account that she made herself. The actress took the fourth place of Forbes List in the rating of celebrities under 21 years of age. For the record, all this time she was able to combine filming and school where she was even a part of cheerleaders.

Dakota Fanning Was the Queen of High School Prom

Dakota also appeared in the last three parts of the featured vampire saga «The Twilight Saga» with Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson. She played Jane, a twin of a vampire Alec (Cameron Bright). The audience was delighted with the contrast of the angelic appearance of the fragile girl and her severe, commanding character that made her the most dangerous member of the Volturi.

«The Twilight Saga»: Dakota Fanning in the Character of Jane Volturi

In 2010, the audience saw Dakota in the film «The Runaways» in which together with Kristen Stewart she played a punk band vocalist. Right after that, Fanning had to play in the picture about a violinist who was in a coma «If I Stay» but the girl left the project because occupancy could pitiably affect her school certificate and Chloë Grace Moretz became a film star.

Dakota Fanning in the Biopic «The Runaways»

Dakota also replaced an initially approved Saoirse Ronan who had to play in the biographical picture «Effie Gray» (2012). The actress appeared before the audience in the character of a wife of a critic, poet, and artist John Ruskin.

Dakota Fanning and Kristen Stewart Became Friends While Filming

In 2015, a Scotchman Ewan McGregor invited Dakota to play in his producer’s debut, in the political drama «American Pastoral». She plays the lead character’s daughter, Merry, who, in the story, grows up and chooses her own path than her father, a fierce patriot and successful entrepreneur, and becomes a political terrorist.

On the Set of the Film «American Pastoral»

Another interesting work of this year is a dumb country girl Liz from the psychological thriller «Brimstone». Besides Dakota, such stars of «Game of Thrones» as Kit Harington and Carice van Houten also acted in this film. The picture was nominated for the Golden Lion of the Venice Film Festival.

In January 2018, Fanning, Luke Evans, and Daniel Brühl became stars of the TV show «The Alienist». This trio personified a team that investigated multiple bloody murders of children in New York in the late 19th century. Dakota plays the first woman in New York police, Sara Howard.

A Trailer of the TV Show «The Alienist» with Dakota Fanning

In the summer of the same year, the «woman’s» spin-off of the «Ocean’s Eleven» called «Ocean’s 8» was released. Fanning had a small cameo in that film.

Modeling Career

In 2007, Fanning presented clothing from Marc Jacobs’ collection. Four years later, the actress became the face of the advertising campaign of Oh Lola perfume by Marc Jacobs.

On the Set of the Perfume Commercial by Marc Jacobs

In 2010, Dakota Fanning signed a modeling contract with IMG Models, with which such celebrities as Kate Moss, Gisele Bündchen, and Naomi Campbell worked at various times.

15-Year Old Dakota Fanning Poses for Vogue

Private Life of Dakota Fanning

The girl doesn’t like to talk about her private life. «I don’t like to wash somebody’s dirty linen in public», she shared in one interview. But she won’t hide her boyfriends’ names behind seven veils.

In 2009, she dated a British actor Freddie Highmore a short while then she had her first serious relationship with a Canadian actor Cameron Bright who played her brother in «The Twilight Saga». In 2012, the couple broke up. At the exact same time when the last part of «The Twilight Saga» was released.

Dakota Fanning and Cameron Bright Have Been Dating for 3 Years

She was involved in 3-year romantic relationships (from 2013 to 2016) with a model Jamie Strachan who was 13 years older than Dakota.

Jamie Strachan, Dakota Fanning’s Ex-Boyfriend

After the breakup with him, Fanning started dating with her school love, a realtor Logan Markley who, at that time, also broke up with his girlfriend. But apparently, relationships with a non-public guy were hard for her, and in 2017, Dakota was seen on a walk with a new boyfriend, Henry Fry.

In the Picture: Dakota Fanning and Henry Fry

Dakota Fanning Now

In 2019, Dakota Fanning will appear in a new film «Once Upon A Time In Hollywood» by Quentin Tarantino. She will play Lynette «Squeaky» Fromme, one of the Charles Manson’s «Family» members who was accused of murdering Roman Polanski’s wife who later became famous for the attempt to kill President Ford.

Dakota Fanning and Her Character’s Prototype

In 2020, the premiere of the movie "Viennese and the Ghosts", in which Dakota starred with Zoe Kravitz and Evan Rachel Wood, is due to take place.

Dakota Fanning: latest news and articles

«I do not hate my sister!»: Dakota Fanning on her younger sibling, Elle, who is hot on her heels

16 May 2023

Katherine Martinez

Pretty actress, nice and easy-going girl. I would like her to have more main roles.

2021-05-04 21:21:34
Carmen Sullivan

I remember she played in Brimstone, not a bad movie. Some other roles of her I don`t remember.

2021-05-01 15:16:15
Hilda Reyes

Even in The Twilight Saga Dakota showed up and she is not skipping any horror movies in the world :) but Twilight is mostly drama but anyway :)

2021-04-06 18:10:40
Rose Hodges

With ease Dakota took a role in Ocean`s Eight, I`m very glad for her, she is doing a good job.

2021-04-01 09:24:15
Betty Bowman

Pretty Fanning started to play in very scary horror movies and now she is a serious lady who takes good main roles

2021-02-26 10:30:08