Fanning first acted at the Towne Lake Arts Center inWoodstock, Georgia, starring in small plays at the age of five.[10] In 1999, she began her professional acting career, appearing in aTide television commercial. Her first significant acting job was a guest role in theNBC primetime dramaER.[11] Fanning then had several guest roles on television series, includingCSI: Crime Scene Investigation,The Practice, andSpin City. She also portrayed the title characters ofAlly McBeal andThe Ellen Show as adolescents.[citation needed]
In 2002, directorSteven Spielberg cast Fanning in the lead child role of Allison "Allie" Clarke/Keys in the science-fictionminiseriesTaken. By this time, she had received positive notices from several film critics, including Tom Shales ofThe Washington Post, who wrote that Fanning "has the perfect sort of otherworldly look about her, an enchanting young actress called upon ... to carry a great weight."[16] In the same year, Fanning appeared in three films: as a kidnapping victim who proves to be more than her abductors bargained for inTrapped, as the young version ofReese Witherspoon's character inSweet Home Alabama, and as Katie in the filmHansel and Gretel. A year later, she starred in two prominent films, playing the uptight child to an immature nanny played byBrittany Murphy inUptown Girls and as Sally inThe Cat in the Hat. In addition, Fanning didvoice-over work for four animated projects during this period.
In 2004, Fanning appeared inMan on Fire as Pita, a nine-year-old who wins over the heart of a retired mercenary (Denzel Washington) hired to protect her from kidnappers.Roger Ebert wrote that Fanning "is a pro at only 10 years old, and creates a heart-winning character."[17] In 2004, she made an appearance on season 10 of the television seriesFriends, playing the role of Mackenzie, a young girl who is moving out of the houseMonica andChandler are buying.Hide and Seek was her first release in 2005, oppositeRobert De Niro. The film was generally panned, but critic Chuck Wilson called it "a fascinating meeting of equals – if the child star [Fanning] challenged the master [De Niro] to a game of stare-down, the legend might very well blink first."[18] Also in 2004, Fanning narrated the documentary filmIn the Realms of the Unreal.[19][20]
Fanning then went on to star inWar of the Worlds, starring alongsideTom Cruise. Released in reverse order (War in June 2005 andDreamer in the following October), both films were a critical success.[citation needed]War directorSteven Spielberg praised "how quickly she understands the situation in a sequence, how quickly she sizes it up, measures it up and how she would really react in a real situation."[25] Fanning moved to another film without a break:Charlotte's Web, which she finished filming in May 2005 in Australia, and premiered on December 15, 2006. During the summer of 2006, Fanning worked on the filmHounddog, described in press reports as a "dark story ofabuse, violence, andElvis Presley adulation in the rural South."[26] Fanning's parents have been criticized for allowing her to film a scene in which her character is raped. Fanning defended the film, though, by saying toReuters, "It's not really happening. It's a movie, and it's called acting."[27] Although the film was a failure both at the box office[28] and with critics,[29]Roger Ebert praised Fanning's performance, comparing her toJodie Foster inTaxi Driver.[30] In the same year, at the age of 12, she was invited to join theAcademy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, becoming the youngest member in the academy's history.[31] Later that year, she was ranked 4th inForbes list of "Top-Earning Stars Aged Under 21", having earned an estimated $4 million in 2006.[32]
In the spring of 2007, she filmedFragments – Winged Creatures alongsideKate Beckinsale,Guy Pearce,Josh Hutcherson, andAcademy Award-winnersForest Whitaker andJennifer Hudson. She plays Anne Hagen, a girl who witnesses her father's murder and who turns to religion in the aftermath. In July, Fanning appeared on a short film titledCutlass, one ofGlamour's "Reel Moments" based on readers' personal essays.Cutlass was directed byKate Hudson. From September to the end of the year, Fanning filmedPush, which centers on a group of young American expatriates withtelekinetic andclairvoyant abilities who hide from the Division (a U.S. government agency) in Hong Kong and band together to try to escape the control of the division.[33] Fanning played Cassie Holmes, a 13-year-old psychic.
Her films, horror animationCoraline and science-fiction thrillerPush, were released on the same day, February 6, 2009. Fanning played Jane, a member of theVolturi Guard, inNew Moon and reprised the role inEclipse, based on novels byStephenie Meyer.[35]New Moon was released on November 20, 2009, andEclipse was released on the following June. On in March 2009, she was ranked number three on the list ofForbes'Most Valuable Young Stars[36] after having earned an estimated $14 million.[citation needed]
During the summer of 2011, Fanning played Tessa inNow Is Good and also became the face ofMarc Jacobs'Oh, Lola! perfume campaign. The ad was banned in the UK as theAdvertising Standards Authority judged that "the ad could be seen to sexualize a child."[40][41] In 2011, Fanning played Annie James inThe Motel Life, released in November of 2013. That fall, Fanning had a co-starring role inEffie Gray, directed by Richard Laxton and written and starringEmma Thompson. In August 2012, she played the lead role of a wealthy financial ecoterrorist Dena Brauer, in a thriller filmNight Moves oppositeJesse Eisenberg andPeter Sarsgaard. The film was directed byKelly Reichardt.[42]Night Moves tells the story of three eco-terrorists who work at an organic farm and collaborate on a plot to blow up a hydroelectric dam.[43]
In January 2013, she was cast asBeverly Aadland in theErrol Flynn biopicThe Last of Robin Hood.[44] Later that year in September, Fanning was cast as Olivia inFranny.[45] In November, she was cast inViena and the Fantomes as Viena, about a roadie traveling across America with a punk rock band in the 1980s.[46] The film was originally set to be released in 2015, but later released digitally on June 30, 2020.[47][48]
In March 2023, Fanning was cast to star in theNetflix miniseriesThe Perfect Couple.[57] In the same year, aThe Bell Jar adaptation to which Fanning was attached was being considered for a TV series. Development has remained on hold.[58]. Fanning starred inThe Equalizer 3, reuniting withDenzel Washington. She was nominated for a 2025Golden Globes andPrimetime Emmy Awards for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in theNetflix seriesRipley as Marge Sherwood.[59]
^Bergin, Olivia (November 9, 2011)."The Queen's Diamond Jubilee".The Daily Telegraph. London.Archived from the original on April 15, 2012. RetrievedApril 14, 2012.
