Elle Fanning revealed she was genuinely caught off guard by her Oscar nomination for her role in Neon’s Sentimental Value when the nominations were announced on January 22. The actress, reflecting on the unexpected moment, shared how she was unprepared and unaware while surrounded by family at her mother’s house.
Unexpected Moment Amid Family and Rest
Fanning confessed to The Hollywood Reporter that she was not even watching the nominations live, having convinced herself she would not receive a nod. She and her sister, Dakota Fanning, were at their mother’s home when the results were revealed, and Fanning had planned a relaxing evening prior.
“Dakota and I had gone out the night before. We had quite a late night,”
she explained with a laugh. When the announcement happened in the early morning, Fanning was “dead asleep” but awoke to her phone lighting up with messages.
Initially thinking the congratulatory texts were related broadly to the film, Fanning struggled to grasp the reality of her nomination.
“I couldn’t compute. I go out bleary-eyed, and I’m like, ‘Mom! Dakota! Wake up. I think I got it. I think I got it,’”
she shared, noting the confusion of her mother and sister.
“I looked like a crazed zombie who was walking in circles saying, ‘Is this real?’”
Celebration Among Cast and Crew After Confirmation
After rewatching the nominations livestream to confirm her recognition, Fanning and her fellow cast and crew celebrated Sentimental Value’s impressive nine Oscar nominations. Alongside her own Best Supporting Actress nomination, co-star Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas also received a nod in the same category. The film garnered several additional acknowledgments, including Stellan Skarsgard for Best Supporting Actor and Renate Reinsve for Best Actress.
The film’s accolades extended to Best Picture, Director, Screenplay, and International Feature categories, underscoring its broad critical acclaim. Fanning highlighted Olivier Bugge Coutté’s editing nod as especially meaningful, noting the significant impact of his work.
“What Olivier has done with the film, and the way that it is edited and constructed — I’m so happy that he wasn’t overlooked because it’s so particular and he has such a keen eye and was so essential to the film,”
she said.
“Editors — I’ve come to learn now in the producing process, too — hold the key to your performance in a lot of ways.”
A Close-Knit Team Formed Through Cannes and Beyond
Since the film’s premiere at the Cannes Film Festival last May, Fanning described the Sentimental Value team as having turned into a “tight-knit family.” She expressed deep emotion about the collective journey.
“The fact that the family was held together and that no one was left out and that we get to continue the celebration with each other is really meaningful,”
said the 27-year-old actress.
“I’ve been quite emotional about this whole experience. I’m still a little glassy-eyed and in shock over it all.”
Longtime Acting Career Culminates in First Oscar Recognition
Though Fanning’s career began at the age of two, and includes notable films such as Maleficent (2014), The Beguiled (2017), and A Complete Unknown (2024), as well as TV roles like The Great and The Girl From Plainville— for which she earned an Emmy nomination — this is her first Academy Award nomination. She reflected on the importance of this recognition, saying,
“I’ve been acting since I was 2. I’ve never gotten to have this experience before. [It’s] my first time being nominated [for an Oscar].”
She added,
“It does really mean something to me, to be recognized by my peers. I don’t think you realize how special that feels until it happens.”
A Year of Diverse Roles Highlights Fanning’s Range
The Oscar nomination came during a particularly busy and varied year for Fanning, with Sentimental Value opening in theaters on the same day as another of her films, Predator: Badlands. She spoke about the unpredictability of her career path, sharing,
“You don’t know what projects are going to come to you or what’s being written at the time, but I have been very fortunate to be able to have these varied projects.”
Fanning expressed a desire to avoid being pigeonholed by her roles.
“I like to be scared. I like to be terrified a bit and step into something new because I feel like that’s how I have to keep pushing myself,”
she said. Reflecting on her breakout role in Maleficent, she acknowledged how it brought opportunities but also typecasting risks:
“People want to put the Disney princess on you. I’m like, ‘Wait, don’t do that to me.’”
Insights Into Her Role as Rachel Kemp
In Sentimental Value, Fanning portrays Rachel Kemp, an American actress cast to star in director Gustav Borg’s Norwegian film. While the character is not Fanning’s most unusual role, it provided space for personal reflection.
“We’re at different phases, but there was a little feeling while playing her that maybe I was looking back at a younger version of myself in this world,”
she said.
Fanning described feeling connected to Kemp’s struggles.
“[There are] definitely feelings that she has had that I am familiar with, and I’ve had before about myself because when you’ve been doing it for a long time, the relationship to it ebbs and flows,”
she explained.
“There was something cathartic for me to play her.”
She also found it ironic that the nomination came for a role where the character wrestles with her career and ultimately chooses to walk away for something she desires.
“To be recognized for a character who is actually struggling in her work and then at the end does a very brave thing and walks away from something she wants, that’s even meta in and of itself,”
Fanning remarked.
Laughing, she imagined her character’s reaction:
“Rachel Kemp is nominated. Once she walks away from the part, I feel like it’s quite hopeful for her. The next thing she’ll do, she’ll really give it her all. She’ll be really good in it.”
Upcoming Project and Sisterly Collaboration
Looking ahead, Fanning is gearing up to star and produce The Nightingale, a long-awaited adaptation filmed alongside her sister Dakota. The project, initially announced in 2019, faced delays due to COVID-19 and complex scheduling issues but is set to begin shooting at the end of March. She shared a mixture of anticipation and humor about the experience:
“I don’t know what I’m going to do on the first day. Our first scene, I think [I’ll be] crying or laughing.”
Joking about the sibling dynamic on set, Fanning said, “She can’t boss me around,” while also noting their professional approach:
“We’re fellow actors who will try to keep reminding ourselves of that.”
This film will mark their first shared starring roles, though Fanning previously portrayed a younger version of Dakota’s character in 2001’s I Am Sam.
This story originally appeared in the February 23 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine.
