Dakota Fanning – Before Elle Followed in her Footsteps

June 12, 2021 156 Comments

                                    June 2005   By Philip Berk

A precocious, blue eyed blonde, seven year old Dakota Fanning broke hearts as the daughter of a mentally-challenged man fighting to retain custody in the family drama I Am Sam. She had only been acting professionally for about a year when she landed this star-making role (which earned her a surprise nomination for a Screen Actors Guild Award). 

Previously she had done an episode of the popular NBC medical drama ER, in which she played a child in need of a bone marrow transplant, and she was the five-year-old incarnation of Calista Flockhart’s title character on Ally McBeal.  She had also done guest roles on hit shows like CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and “Spin City”.

But I Am Sam ended her television career.

After that she played the kidnapped asthmatic daughter of a Charlize Theron and Stuart Townsend in the thriller Trapped and the young version of Reese Witherspoon’s character in the romantic comedy Sweet Home Alabama.

Her first starring role was as the spoiled but ignored young girl with an obsessive distaste for germs who grows up when she’s put in the charge of a hard-partying rock star’s daughter (Brittany Murphy) in “Uptown Girls” 

But her major hit was the action-packed revenge drama Man on Fire in which she played a ten-year-old who befriends her bodyguard (Denzel Washington), prompting him to embark on a deadly journey of retribution when she is  kidnapped.

Her current film, Hide and Seek, in which she stars opposite Robert DeNiro, is a scary R rated thriller which has been the number one movie at the U.S. box office 

I  remember the time I asked  her mother at the Sam I Am press conference how old her daughter was when she first started speaking.

“Six months,” she told me, “and she was reading a year later.”

I wasn’t surprised.

Since then she’s starred opposite two other Academy award winners, not just appearing with them in major films but sharing top billing.

At her press conference for Hide and Seek she’s as irrepressible as ever, and every inch a  seasoned pro.

When I ask her to compare her three Oscar winning costars, she diplomatically replies, “They’ve all been so nice to me. I’ve had great experiences with all of them. We’ve all played different characters, and all of them have been so kind and generous to me. Bob DeNiro, was just so nice.”

Do they work differently?

“They’re all focused and committed to their work and so intense.”

So none of them joke around on the set?

“Oh, they definitely do. They’re always having fun. Although sometimes to maintain the emotion they stay in character,  but definitely off screen we have a good time with everybody.”

Who spends most of his time in the trailer?

“They’re all usually on the set.  But it’s hard for me to say because usually when I’m not filming I’m being tutored.”

Is she enrolled in a regular school?

“No I’m home schooled. I have my teacher Jeanie who’s with me on all my movies, and that’s very important to my family. We do school wherever we can, and then we do the tests and quizzes, and we send them to a home-schooling program in Florida”

And between films, what happens?

“I do home schooling. It’s something I really enjoy doing.”

Don’t you miss having other kids around?

“No, because my teacher makes it so much fun for me. And when we get our school trailer on the set, we always decorate it with posters and globes and different things. We always have a fun corner which has different games. My favorite games are cards and Parcheesi , so we always have those in our fun corner.”

What are your favorite subjects?

“History. I’m doing a big report on Claire Barton who founded the Red Cross. It’s like a nine page report.”

And your grade level?

“Sixth grade.”

You’ve worked almost non stop in the past four years. Do you ever have breaks or are you going from one job to the next?

“Sometimes, like I was in Kentucky and Louisiana and then I went straight to New York to do the one I’m  filming right now. I don’t mind.  I consider it fun, and it’s exciting to meet new people.”

Hide and Seek is a complete departure for her. It’s very dark and scary.

To help capture the mood, her natural blond hair is pitch black.

It’s a wig.

What was your reaction when you first looked at yourself in the mirror?

“I didn’t feel like myself at all. I felt completely like Emily. I would put the wig on in the morning and become Emily, but then I would take it off at night and become Dakota. But Emily was such a wonderful character to play because she’s so different from me. I have never played anybody like her before, which is one of the things I love about acting:  you get to play different people. and you have different experiences that you might never have if you weren’t acting.”

In the movie Emily has an imaginary friend. Have you ever had an imaginary friend?

“I had a couple, but none of them were like Charlie in the film.”

What were they like?

“They were nice. They were not mean. I had weird names for them like Tube and Cobb.”

What scares you?

“Watching this movie I got really frightened. It was as though it were really happening. I watched it with Elizabeth Shue” (who’s also in the film.)

Do you like scary movies?

“I do. They’re so suspenseful and fun to watch. and with this one you have to connect the dots to figure it out. You’re on the edge of your seat figuring out what’s going to happen next.”

Is she a seasoned pro on the set? Does she get it right on the first take?

“It depends on the director. On this movie we tried a lot of different things. We experimented. And Robert DeNiro, likes to try a lot of different things. He likes to explore different ideas. So sometimes we’d do a lot of takes, and sometimes we didn’t do all that many.”

Did you offer suggestions?

“If I have an idea I definitely tell the director. I had a really good time developing my character. In the movie she’s trying to cope with the loss of her mother and the nightmare of moving from the city to the country.”

Would you like to continue acting when you grow up?

“I definitely want to. I’d like to be an actress my whole life.”

In your next movie. War of the Worlds, you have another famous costar, Tom Cruise.

What’s it’s like working with him?

“He’s so nice, and we have so much fun together. And Steven Spielberg (who’s directing) is such a kind person. The film comes out June 29th so we’re on a tight schedule.”

Do you get to meet their children. Do they come on the set?

“Tom’s kids are on the set all the time. Actually his son was there the other day. And Steven’s have all been on the set except the eldest who’s a student  studying in New York.”

Emily doesn’t have such a good dad. How’s your dad?

“My dad is great. He’s really nice. I really like my dad a lot. He’s nothing like my dad in the movie, thank goodness. I’m really close to him.”

Does he read the script and give his approval?

“He didn’t read this one. He didn’t know what was going to happen; so I was dying for him to see the movie.”

And his reaction?

“He really liked it a lot.”

Who decides what films she does?

“It’s a joint decision between my parents, my agent, my manager and me. We all read the scripts.”

How were you cast in this one?

“I read the script, and I wanted to do it so bad. And then to work with Robert DeNiro, and the fabulous cast (Amy Irving, Famke Jannsen) was so exciting for me.”

At the end of a shoot, how hard is it to say goodbye to these people?

“That’s the hardest part of every movie. It’s so sad. They’re like  your family.”

Have you seen Sean Penn since I Am Sam?

“I saw him at the premiere. but I have not seen him since.”

After War of the Worlds, do you have another role lined up?

Slightly embarrassed she replies, “I’m going to Australia to do Charlotte’s

Web!”

What are her favorites?

Color?

“Pink.”

(She wearing pink shoes which she proudly shows off.)

Food?

“Panda Express,” (Chinese fast food) and I like Del Taco or Taco Bell,” (Mexican fast food.) We have tacos every night. It’s so sad,” she jokes.

How about music?

“Tom Cruise gave me an iPod, and I’ve been listening to that a lot.”

Any favorite artists?

“He put a lot of Buddy Holly on it — he really likes Buddy Holly — so I like him a lot also.”

Do you read a lot?

“Yeah. Elisabeth Shue gave me a lot of books at the end of the movie. She gave me The Secret Garden, The Yearling, and A Little Princess, which I’m just starting to read.”

Your little sister Elle is also an actress.

How old is she?

‘She’s six. She’ll be seven in April.”

Is there any sibling rivalry?

“None at all. We really like each other a lot. We visit each other’s set. She’s so funny and cute. We have a great time together.”

Do you get an allowance, and what do you spend it on?

“I don’t.  I’ve never bought anything. I don’t even know about that.”

And with your birthday coming up, February 23, will you have a big party?

“It’ll be on the set cause we’ll still be filming.”

Have you asked for a special present?

“It’s wishful thinking, but I’d like this really neat cell phone, but I probably won’t get it.”

I wonder why!

Since you don’t attend public school, are you able to stay in touch with

friends?

“I’ve only been working steadily the past four years. I’ve had friends for a long time. They love that I’m doing movies. They love to go see them. I see them all the time.”

When do you see them?

“On weekends and after work, like right now when I’m filming in California.”

And do you have any hobbies?

“I like to knit, and I play the piano.”

POST SCRIPT

Surprisingly Elle has replaced her as Hollywood’s top ingenue. Meanwhile the film in which they play sisters , The Nightingale, has had a very checkered history; originally intended for a 2018 release it will streamed on Disney+ next year.

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