Dakota Fanning shot to fame after starring in I Am Sam at seven years old, and has continued to carve out a successful career
Dakota Fanning revealed her thoughts on motherhood in a recent interview with Byrdie, sharing that she is hoping to welcome children during her 30s. “Every year that goes by, you’re more in tune with who you are and with what you want and don’t want,” she explained. “I’m associating this decade with the next part of my life. I’ve always wanted to have kids – that’s something I’ve never questioned and has always been really important to me. So, hopefully, dating will end soon, and this next decade will bring that into my life.”
Dakota is incredibly private when it comes to her romantic relationships, yet has been open in the past about her desire to become a mother. “Being an actor is a huge part of my identity. I don’t really know who I am without it,” she told Porter in 2024. “But I also have a desire to set up my life and career so that I always have a choice.”
“Having kids is probably more important to me than anything, even being an actor,” she continued. “If somebody said I had to choose, I would choose having kids. I’m one of those people who has always felt that pull.” Dakota will likely raise her future children out of the spotlight, having grown up in Hollywood as one of the industry’s most successful child stars.
She shot to fame at seven years old following her award-winning performance in the 2001 film I Am Sam, and went on to star in hits like The Cat in the Hat, Man on Fire, War of the Worlds, Charlotte’s Web and Coraline. Despite her incredible success, Dakota enjoyed a relatively normal childhood thanks to her down-to-earth parents, Steve and Heather.
“I don’t feel like I’ve missed out on any milestones,” Dakota told NJ.com. “I think acting’s only enhanced my life. I’ve been to so many more places than the average 16-year-old, I’ve met so many people from so many walks of life. I feel really lucky, and I think it’s got a lot to do with my family.”
“Our parents are so removed from this business, and so happy just to be our parents,” she continued. “I can honestly say I have a completely normal life. Probably more normal than normal people!” The blonde beauty is particularly close to her mother, who was once a professional tennis player.
“She changed the course of her own life for me. She put her own dreams to the side so I could achieve mine,” Dakota said in a speech at the IndieWire Honors ceremony. “She allowed me to have my own independence and stand on my own two feet, to find my footing as a young woman and as an actor, but she was always there.”
“There was never a day on set my entire life until I was 18 that she wasn’t there. I wonder if anyone can love me as much as she does.” Dakota is not the only famous Fanning in her family; her younger sister, Elle, is an award-winning actress who has appeared in everything from The Great and Maleficent to 20th Century Women and The Beguiled. The pair are incredibly close and are currently working on the film The Nightingale together, set for release in 2027.
