The Wondrous World of Elle Fanning
It's 2 p.m. when Elle Fanning breezes into the courtyard restaurant of legendary Los Angeles hotel Chateau Marmont. At 5'9" in black leather ballet flats, she carries herself with a swan-like confidence. Her skin (the subject of countless L'Oréal campaigns) is glowing, and her glossy blonde hair is pinned back in an elegant bun. She is wrapped in a chic camel trench coat over a striped green shirtdress from The Row.
The 27-year-old is remarkably well put-together for someone who was partying the night before with her older sister and fellow actor, Dakota Fanning, at one of the final shows of Sabrina Carpenter's Short n' Sweet Tour. I know this because it was all over the internet when the duo got "arrested" by Carpenter for being "too hot."
It didn't come as a complete surprise to the Fanning sisters when (following in the footsteps of Nicole Kidman, Anne Hathaway, and Gigi Hadid at previous shows) the pink fluffy handcuffs headed their way. They were given prior warning, so they were able to dress accordingly, which they did in very Sabrina Carpenter–esque lingerie-style slip dresses. "We're gonna be on the screen, so … you want to look good!" laughs Fanning before glancing at the menu and quickly deciding on a Coke, Greek salad, and side of fries. "When I told Dakota I was gonna wear a slip dress, she was like, 'Okay, well, you're wearing that, so I need to wear something cute too!'"
Fanning feels very at home at Chateau Marmont. Having made her movie debut at age 2, playing a younger version of Dakota's character in the 2001 film I Am Sam, Fanning was "running through the halls" filming Sofia Coppola's Somewhere (2010) right here by the time she was 11. "There are so many people who still work here who are like, 'We knew you when you were this big!'" she smiles. "I feel cozy here."
Her breakout performance in the cult film, in which she starred opposite Stephen Dorff, paved the way for major roles to come, including in J.J. Abrams's 2011 sci-fi hit Super 8 and the Disney blockbuster Maleficent. In the last decade alone, Fanning has achieved what few stars manage in their entire career, gracefully treading the line between indie films, like art house horror The Neon Demon, and acclaimed TV series such as satirical comedy-drama The Great, which ran for three seasons on Hulu between 2020 and 2023.
For her performance in the latter—in which she played Catherine, the 18th-century empress of Russia—Fanning was nominated for a Golden Globe for three years running. This year, she's been recognized for a fourth time for her supporting role in Joachim Trier's poignant Norwegian family drama Sentimental Value.
Fanning has a relatively small but no less significant part in the film set in Oslo, Norway. The story follows the fractured relationship between an acclaimed but troubled film director, Gustav (played by Stellan Skarsgård), and his grown-up daughters after the death of their mother. Making a personal film about his complicated family history, Gustav tries to enlist his actress daughter (played by Renate Reinsve) to star in it. She refuses, and tension ensues when he casts glossy A-list American film star Rachel Kemp (played by Fanning) instead.
