Born:
February 23, 1994
in
Conyers, Georgia
Best Known For:
Being a child star.
Early-life:
Hannah Dakota Fanning was born in Conyers, Georgia, on February 23, 1994 to former tennis professional Heather Joy Arrington and former minor league baseball player Steven J Fanning. Her sister, Elle, is also an actress. Dakota was only a small child when she began acting in plays at the Towne Lake Arts Center in Woodstock, Georgia. Her first professional job was a guest role in an episode of ER in 2000.
Career:
Further guest appearances followed in a number of TV shows, including Ally McBeal, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, The Practice, Spin City and Malcolm in the Middle. She was still only seven when she starred opposite Sean Penn in the movie I Am Sam (2001), a role that earned her a Screen Actors Guild nomination. A year later, she played the lead child role in Steven Spielberg miniseries Taken. One of the busiest child actors of her generation, she went on to star in Home Alabama (2002), Hansel & Gretel (2002), Uptown Girls (2003), Dr Seuss' The Cat in the Hat (2003), War of the Worlds (2005), Hounddog (2006), Charlotte's Web (2006) and the Twilight movies. Fanning has successfully made the transition to more grown-up roles. Her recent work includes The Motel Life (2012), Very Good Girls (2013), The Last of Robin Hood (2013) and Every Secret Thing (2014).
Quote:
"Acting is what I love to do. I wouldn't trade it for the world. I don't think of it as work. It's really fun for me."
Trivia:
At the age of 12, Fanning was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, becoming the youngest member in the Academy's history.