MEDIA > ARTICLES & INTERVIEWS > 2004

FANNING THE FIRE
from Jam!, April 24, 2004
by Louis B. Hobson
She may have just turned 10 but Dakota Fanning is one of the most respected actors in Hollywood today.
"She's not a child. She's a little lady and one of the finest co-stars you could wish for," said Denzel Washington, who plays Fanning's bodyguard in Man on Fire, opening locally today.
"This girl's for real. When she looks at you in a scene, she is looking through you. You can't catch her play-acting. She knows why she's saying a line and you know her mind is going a mile a minute."
Fanning's big break came in 2001 when she played Sean Penn's daughter in I Am Sam. She became the youngest person ever to be nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award.
Since then, she starred in the miniseries Taken, opposite Brittany Murphy in Uptown Girls and squared off with Mike Myers's rambunctious feline in The Cat in the Hat.
After completing Man on Fire with Washington, she played Robert De Niro's daughter in Hide and Seek.
"Hide and Seek is another thriller," explains Fanning, who was a kidnap victim in Trapped. "I never get scared making these kinds of movies because it's all make-believe, but I did cry when I saw the finished version of Man on Fire because it is so sad. I was never quite sure how they were going to end it."
When Man on Fire wrapped, director Tony Scott presented Fanning with one of her most beloved mementos.
"Tony gave me Creasy Bear, my character's teddy bear from the movie. He sits in my bedroom to remind me of Denzel."
Man on Fire is set in Mexico City, which is plagued by kidnappings. Fanning had several bodyguards of her own for the five-month shoot.
"My favourite was from New Zealand. He actually looked a lot like Denzel. I didn't get to go out too much in Mexico City, but on weekends I got to go with my parents to see the pyramids. Denzel would go home every weekend to L.A. to spend time with his family, so we got the weekends off too."
Fanning did far more than simply learn lines and talk about motivation for Man on Fire. She had to learn to play the piano, speak Spanish and learn to dive.
"I had tutors for everything, so that really is me swimming and diving, playing the piano and speaking Spanish."
She says her three powerhouse co-stars - Penn, De Niro and Washington - may have different approaches to acting but they all demanded one thing before filming began.
"They all wanted to spend time with me to establish a relationship. I met with them before filming started and got to meet their families.
"I felt really comfortable with them but it was so amazing to watch them change into their characters on set."
What's also comfortable for Fanning is the fame her movie and TV roles have brought her.
"People come up to me on the street and in malls. I like it because it means they like my movies. They mostly talk to me about I Am Sam, Uptown Girls and The Cat in the Hat."
On the strength of Dakota's popularity, her sister Elle Fanning has a budding career.
"Elle has played a younger version of me in I Am Sam and Taken. She just turned six. I hope one day she gets the same kind of wonderful experiences I've had."

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