Dakota Fanning has opened up about the “super inappropriate questions” she’s been asked as a rising star in Hollywood.
The “Perfect Couple” actress highlighted the troubling interactions she had as a child star growing up in Tinseltown during an interview with The Cut.
“In interviews when I was young, I remember journalists asking me, ‘How do you avoid becoming a tabloid girl?’ “, explained Fanning.
The Emmy nominee admitted she’s always been a “mature kid,” but was shocked when reporters asked her personal questions about her life.
“I was in an interview when I was a kid and someone asked me, ‘How can you have friends?’ It’s like, huh?
Fanning got her start at just five years old when she starred in small roles on shows like “ER” and “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.”
Her big break came in the early 2000s when she played roles in films such as “I Am Sam” and “War of the Worlds” alongside Tom Cruise.
She won a Critics Choice Award for her role in both of these films, with the first win coming when she was 7 years old.
The 30-year-old suggests she has dodged tabloids obsessed with the industry’s young stars.
Instead of being homeschooled like other stars, Fanning was enrolled in a high school and credits her family for protecting her from the dark side of Hollywood.
“I also think I was a little too young for it to fully hit me. So it was good. People couldn’t afford that kind of thing anymore. By the time I got to that age, it was kind of recognized that that was probably not the best way to treat people,” the actress told the outlet.
Fanning also thanked her mother, Hannah Joy Arrington, for being with her “every second” to ensure she was treated with respect and an equal footing as a working actress, despite her age .
But although she was protected by those close to her, the “Twilight” alum felt a “vibe” of people wanting her to fail.
“For a lot of my life, I felt like people were just waiting for me to make a big mistake. Eventually, I think everyone sees that I’ve grown up, so I don’t have to worry about those things anymore,” she said, adding that “it makes you feel a little on your guard. I just live my life here.
Still, the actress said she doesn’t look back on her early years with any regrets.
Fanning wasn’t the only child in his family to be in the spotlight.
Her younger sister, Elle Fanning, started earlier than her.
She appeared alongside Dakota in the 2001 film “I Am Sam” at age 3, and went on to star in films and television shows, including her most recent role as Catherine in “The Great.”
