\u201cMan on Fire.\u201d<\/a> \u201cIt was all kind of instinctual. I didn\u2019t really take any classes,\u201d she says. \u201cI\u2019ve learned a lot from people I\u2019ve worked with. I\u2019ve learned so much, but it\u2019s been more on the ground.\u201d<\/p>\nFanning says she\u2019s always surprised by the projects fans refer to when they approach her. \u201cIf it\u2019s a girl my age, it\u2019ll probably be \u2018Uptown Girls\u2019 [a 2003 coming-of-age drama with Brittany Murphy]. But if I had to pick one that sort of [gets mentioned] across the board, it\u2019s \u2018Man on Fire.\u2019 That\u2019s a lot of people\u2019s favorite. And I totally understand. Denzel freaking Washington, Tony Scott. It\u2019s such a good movie. It\u2019s so sad, it makes me cry.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"New](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1787154623_976_.jpeg\")
![\"Dakota](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1787154623_153_.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n
(David Urbanke \/ For The Times) <\/p>\n
The film\u2019s ending, she means, not the experience making it. \u201cI think because I started acting so young and had these really pivotal, poignant experiences, it\u2019s immortalized the memories. So when people ask, \u2018Do you even remember doing \u201cMan on Fire\u201d?\u2019 I\u2019m like, \u2018Yeah, of course I do. What do you mean?\u2019 I think about the memories with Denzel and with Tony, and getting to live in Mexico City for six months when you\u2019re 9 years old is pretty spectacular.\u201d<\/p>\n
While Fanning continues filming the Apple series, helmed by showrunner Alex Cary (\u201cHomeland\u201d), alongside another stellar ensemble (one that includes Stellan Skarsg\u00e5rd and Grace Gummer), she\u2019ll be promoting \u201cThe Sun Never Sets.\u201d The indie drama also stars Jake Johnson, is directed by Joe Swanberg and opens in limited release Aug. 28 before going wide Sept. 4. \u201cWe filmed that in Alaska last June, and it was one of the most magical experiences I\u2019ve ever had in my life,\u201d says Fanning. \u201cI\u2019ve never been camping, I\u2019m not super outdoorsy, but in Alaska, it is so unbearably beautiful you can\u2019t even believe what you\u2019re looking at and you want to be out in it, on the water and on a mountain.\u201d<\/p>\n
In addition to getting more in touch with her outdoorsy side, Fanning added an unexpected skill to her r\u00e9sum\u00e9. \u201cMy character works in construction and I learned to drive and operate a bulldozer and a forklift,\u201d she says with pride. \u201cI loved every second.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fanning\u2019s co-star Johnson told The Envelope via email he loved working with her, \u201cfirst because she\u2019s a great actor. She is present and unpredictable in scenes. She is real,\u201d he shared. \u201cBut what I enjoyed most is being around her. I knew she was going to be talented, I didn\u2019t know she was going to be so fun and funny. We became fast friends and she made the experience such a joy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Twenty-five years in, Fanning is just as fulfilled by the work as she was at the very beginning of her career. \u201cIt\u2019s a job, but it\u2019s also time in your life, days, months,\u201d she says. \u201cIf you\u2019re not filled by it in a real way that feels good, I don\u2019t know how to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Which makes another upcoming industry milestone all the more meaningful: a permanent \u201cplace\u201d on Hollywood Boulevard. \u201cMy sister and I are the first sisters to get stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame,\u201d Fanning reveals. \u201cIt\u2019s a very \u2018Whoa, what is happening?\u2019 moment because I remember being 6 years old and coming to L.A. to see if I could get some commercials. I was a massive \u2018I Love Lucy\u2019 fan when I was little and Lucille Ball was my favorite. And so we went to see her star. That\u2019s a big memory for me as a kid, so having that happen is insane. It will be a double star ceremony, and I\u2019m so excited and can\u2019t wait for that.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"August](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1787154624_589_.jpeg\")
<\/p>\n
(David Urbanke \/ For The Times)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"From the outside looking in, Dakota Fanning \u2014 as a household name for roughly two decades and an…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":645671,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[268],"tags":[6054,434,47642,18,117,273230,15882,10228,19,17,3255,1599,24413,5733,34713,28825,273231,236994,80,3257],"class_list":["post-645670","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-celebrities","tag-actor","tag-celebrities","tag-dakota-fanning","tag-eire","tag-entertainment","tag-fanning","tag-fault","tag-fire","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-life","tag-lot","tag-man","tag-performance","tag-sarah","tag-sept","tag-talented-people","tag-tv-academy","tag-work","tag-year"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/117122973586539675","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/645670","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=645670"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/645670\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/645671"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=645670"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=645670"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=645670"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}