‘The Nightingale’ Star Dakota and Elle Fanning Serve Sheer Black Lace and Butterfly Wings on a Sisters’ Night Out at the Academy Museum Gala

Few sister acts in Hollywood have lasted as long, or looked as good together, as Dakota and Elle Fanning. They share a stylist, a production company and a long history on screen, yet their fashion tastes tend to point in different directions. When they walk a carpet together, they usually pick separate designers, which makes every joint appearance feel like a mini fashion face-off.

The sixth annual Academy Museum Gala on October 17 in Los Angeles was one such night. The event honored Charlize Theron, Colman Domingo and John Carpenter, with Taylor Swift set to perform, and The Zoe Report called the Fannings’ arrival a sisters’ night out.

Dakota and Elle Fanning’s Academy Museum Gala looks were a study in contrast. Elle wore a custom Valentino gown with a butterfly bodice and a pastel skirt and cape, while Dakota went for a sheer black lace dress with an asymmetrical neckline.

Dakota and Elle Fanning have a night out at the #AcademyMuseumGala https://t.co/u0YMJSWqkN

— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) October 18, 2026

In the photo, Elle stands tall in a plunging, V-neck bodice covered in jeweled, silvery embellishment shaped like butterfly wings. Below the waist, the gown dissolves into a soft cascade of pink, lavender and blue chiffon that blends from one shade to the next. A long, billowing cape trails behind her in the same pastel colors, and Cartier jewelry adds sparkle at her neckline.

It is a whimsical look, and it fits the night’s butterfly theme, with Janelle Monáe and Amandla Stenberg also wearing wings. Elle’s version is the dreamiest of the group.

Taylor Swift chats with Dakota and Elle Fanning at the #AcademyMuseumGala. https://t.co/CCtR8tn3tS

— Variety (@Variety) October 18, 2026

Dakota took the opposite approach. Her black lace dress is sleeveless with an asymmetrical neckline and a sheer, floor-length skirt that moves like smoke around her legs. A ribbon at the waist adds a delicate, feminine touch, and she wore gold jewelry and Cartier pieces in place of anything flashy.

The dress is more understated than her sister’s, but its transparency gives it a subtle edge. It is also in keeping with the way Dakota tends to dress, with a simple, relaxed glamour that does not overdo the details.

Dakota Fanning and Elle Fanning share a sweet sisters moment on the carpet at the Academy Museum Gala View the full gallery here: https://t.co/iSaYjNZKdr https://t.co/kWrGml4GLx

— Deadline (@DEADLINE) October 18, 2026

The sisters have long had different approaches to fashion. Elle has described herself as classic with a twist, and her older sister as a little more laid-back. At the Vanity Fair Oscar Party in March, that difference showed. Elle wore a custom black Givenchy gown, while Dakota wore an embroidered black Zuhair Murad dress.

At the 2026 Golden Globes, Elle wore a custom light blue Gucci gown embroidered with flowers, and Dakota wore a shimmering, draped Vivienne Westwood gown with a diamond necklace. They also work with the same stylist, Samantha McMillen, and still manage to look like themselves.

They’ve done this before. At the 2025 Academy Museum Gala, Elle wore a gown with a red feathered skirt, and Dakota wore a white gown with black flowers. Compared with those looks, this year’s pairings feel more romantic on Elle’s side and more pared-back on Dakota’s.

That continuity makes the gala something of a tradition for them. Each year, they show up together and then split off into their own styles.

The night followed a big year for Elle. She earned her first Oscar nomination, for Best Supporting Actress, for playing Rachel Kemp in Joachim Trier’s ‘Sentimental Value,’ which won the Oscar for Best International Feature Film. She wore a sparkling white Givenchy by Sarah Burton ball gown to the ceremony.

She has also said she learned about the nomination while recovering from a late night out with Dakota. That makes a sisters’ night out at the gala feel like a nice full-circle moment. She also starred in ‘Predator: Badlands’ and is in ‘The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping,’ due November 20.

The sisters also work together. They launched Lewellen Pictures in 2021 with a first-look deal with MRC, and they will star together on screen in ‘The Nightingale,’ the first time they have led a film side by side. Elle previously played the younger version of Dakota’s character in ‘I Am Sam’ when she was three.

That professional bond helps explain why their joint appearances feel so natural. They are family and collaborators.

The carpet was crowded with star power. Taylor Swift, Kate Hudson, Jamie Lee Curtis, Kerry Washington, Janelle Monáe, Charlize Theron and Teyana Taylor all attended. Next to those bolder statements, the Fannings stood out for their grace.

They show that a sisters’ night out does not need matching outfits to feel like a unit.

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