People Were Shocked When They Found Out Elle and Dakota Fanning’s Real Names

Most people know them as Dakota Fanning and Elle Fanning, but those famous names are not actually the actresses’ first names. The truth behind their real names has surprised many fans over the years.

Dakota and Elle are sisters who grew up in the spotlight and built long careers in Hollywood. However, according to past interviews, both actresses have always gone by their middle names, not the names listed first on their birth certificates.

Dakota was born Hannah Dakota Fanning, and Elle was born Mary Elle Fanning. Elle explained this naming tradition in a 2016 interview with Glamour.

She shared that using middle names was normal in their family and not something they chose because of fame. My mom goes by her middle name, and my sister goes by her middle name. Her first name is Hannah, Elle said.

It’s possibly a Southern thing, I don’t know. But since my mom goes by her middle name, we go by our middle names too, she added.

While Dakota never had much trouble with her name, Elle said her situation was more awkward when she was younger. In school, teachers would call her by her legal first name, which confused everyone.

It was awkward in school when they were calling roll call, she recalled. Because they’d go, ‘Mary? Mary?’ Kids would be like, ‘There’s no Mary here.’ I’d awkwardly raise my hand, like, ‘Uh, it’s me.’

Dakota also spoke about her name in an earlier interview. In 2004, she told People that her father chose her middle name and that it simply stuck.

My first name is Hannah, she said. So it is Hannah Dakota Fanning. But I have always been called Dakota.

Names aside, both sisters have continued to grow their careers and are now preparing for a major project together. They are set to star in The Nightingale, a film based on Kristin Hannah’s 2015 novel.

The movie takes place during World War II and follows two sisters trying to survive in Nazi-occupied France. It will be the first time Dakota and Elle play sisters on screen.

Before filming began, the two agreed to keep their sibling habits in check. Elle shared a lighthearted moment from the 2026 Golden Globes during an interview with E! News on Jan. 11.

[Dakota] promised me that she’s not gonna boss me around, Elle said. I’m like, ‘You have to treat me like a fellow actor.’

Dakota had her own request, asking Elle not to annoy me too much. The Nightingale has been in development for several years, but the sisters are finally ready to begin.

Elle also revealed to E! that both sisters are producing the film. It’s taken a couple years in the making, she said, but we are finally really doing it this time.

The movie is scheduled to be released in theaters on Feb. 12, 2027. Aside from this collaboration, both sisters have been incredibly active with individual projects over the last year.

Dakota Fanning recently received critical acclaim for her role in the Netflix limited series Ripley and the mystery thriller The Perfect Couple. In 2025, she continued her streak in the horror genre with the supernatural film Vicious.

Elle Fanning has also had a massive couple of years, recently starring as Sylvie Russo in the Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown. Her performance in that film earned her several award nominations and a Best Supporting Actress win from the National Board of Review.

In late 2025, she took on a dual role in Predator: Badlands, which became one of her highest-grossing films to date. She is also currently preparing for her role as Effie Trinket in the upcoming Hunger Games prequel, Sunrise on the Reaping.

Both sisters have also launched their own production company, Lewellen Pictures, to develop more projects together. This venture allows them to have more creative control over the stories they want to tell.

The Nightingale will be the flagship project for their partnership and is directed by Mélanie Laurent. Fans have been waiting for this on-screen pairing since they both appeared in I Am Sam as the same character at different ages.

Tell us what you think about the Fanning sisters finally working together on a film in the comments.