How Many Awards Has Dakota Fanning Won And What Were They For?

Born in 1994 in Conyers, Georgia, Dakota Fanning has already put together a prolific career that most actors could only dream of in Hollywood, amassing nearly 70 projects as of 2023, with more on the way.

Fanning's career began in 2000 with guest spots on several major television series, including "E.R.," "Ally McBeal," "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," "The Practice," and "Spin City." The actor's impressive start was a mere preview of a stellar career, as she joined the industry awards conversation by 2001.

Playing Lucy, the 7-year-old daughter of an intellectually challenged man, Sam (Sean Penn), in the 2001 family drama "I Am Sam," Fanning earned the first five of her 17 awards out of 36 nominations in her career thus far. "I Am Sam" was a particularly notable introduction for Fanning to the awards scene in 2002, as she was in contention for accolades from several major industry and critic organizations. Fanning earned a nomination for outstanding performance by a female actor in a supporting role from the Screen Actors Guild Awards — along with Penn for his leading turn in the film.

Fanning captured several youth awards for her portrayal of Lucy, including wins for best young actor-actress from the Critics' Choice Awards; the youth in film award from the Las Vegas Film Critics Society Awards; best performance in a feature film — young actress age 10 and under from the Young Artist Awards; best youth performance from the Phoenix Film Critics Society Awards; and outstanding new talent from the Satellite Awards.

Following her smashing debut on the awards circuit with "I Am Sam" in 2002, Dakota Fanning began working with one A-list actor after the next, including Denzel Washington in the 2004 crime thriller "Man on Fire." Not only did the performer earn a best young actress nomination from the likes of the Critics' Choice Awards, but 19 years later, she joined "The Equalizer 3," where she was overjoyed to be working with Washington again.

While Fanning didn't capture any awards for her work on "Man on Fire," she earned major notices for her role opposite Tom Cruise in director Steven Spielberg's 2005 remake of the classic sci-fi action-adventure, "War of the Worlds." Fanning won three awards for her portrayal of Rachel Ferrier, the estranged daughter of Ray Ferrier (Cruise). In 2006, the Critics' Choice Awards named Fanning best young actor-actress, while the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, USA, awarded her the best performance by a younger actor trophy. Rounding out her wins for "War of the Worlds" was a youth in film award from the Las Vegas Film Critics Society.

The ShoWest Convention (now known as CinemaCon) made Fanning the organization's supporting actress of the year winner in 2006 but did not cite a specific film. Also in 2006, Fanning took home the Young Artist Awards' best performance in a feature film (comedy or drama) — leading young actress for the family drama "Dreamer."

Several more awards poured in for Dakota Fanning after "War of the Worlds," as she took the favorite female movie star award at the 2007 Kids Choice Awards for the family fantasy "Charlotte's Web." In 2008, Fanning shared an ensemble acting of the year award with her castmates from the Hollywood Film Awards for the drama "The Secret Life of Bees," and the film also earned her a best performance by a youth — female from the Phoenix Film Critics Society Awards. "The Secret Life of Bees" earned Fanning yet another award in 2009 from the Young Artist Awards for best performance in a feature film— leading young actress.

While Fanning has been awarded for her live-action films, she was honored with a best animated female award in 2009 from the Alliance of Women Film Journalists for her voice work as Coraline Jones in the stop-motion animated feature "Coraline." Fanning's work as a whole was recognized in 2009 when the Palm Springs International Film Festival honored her with its Rising Star award.

Fanning's last big honor came in 2013 — when the National Arts Awards gave the actor the Bell Family Foundation Young Artist Award — but she has still been recognized with various nominations. From 2018 to 2021, Fanning received nods for her work on the mystery crime drama "The Alienist" from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films, Satellite Awards and the Gold Derby Awards.

In 2020, Fanning was among the actors cited in the Screen Actors Guild Awards nod for outstanding performance by a cast in a motion picture for writer-director Quentin Tarantino's 2019 Tinseltown opus, "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood."