Mary Elle Fanning is an American actress and model. She is best known for her recent works in a number of independent films, and her portrayal as Aurora in the Maleficent film series. As the younger sister of actress Dakota Fanning, she made her film debut as the younger version of her sister’s character in the drama film I Am Sam. Take a look below for 26 more fun and interesting facts about Elle Fanning.

1. Fanning was born on April 9, 1998, in Conyers, Georgia, to Heather Joy, who played tennis professionally, and Steven J. Fanning, who played minor league baseball for teams affiliated with the St. Louis Cardinals and now works as an electronics salesman in Los Angeles.

2. Her maternal grandfather is American football player Rick Arrington, and her aunt is ESPN reporter Jill Arrington.

3. Fanning is the younger sister of Dakota Fanning, who is also an actress and model.

4. She has been quoted as saying, “We’re just normal sisters. We both go to school and we just play together.”

5. Fanning started acting before turning three years old.

6. She began her acting career by playing the younger version of her older sister Dakota’s characters in the miniseries Taken and the movie I Am Sam.

7. In 2002, at the age of four, Fanning won her first role independent of her sister in the comedy Daddy Day Care.

8. Anecdotal evidence of her emerging skill was seen in the decision to cast her in the role of Ruth in The Door in the Floor (2004) opposite Jeff Bridges and Kim Basinger.

9. Late in 2003, Fanning appeared in Because of Winn-Dixie in the small role of Sweetie Pie Thomas.

10. In 2004, she did voice work in the English-dubbed version of Miyazaki’s animated film My Neighbor Totoro, in the role of Mei, opposite Dakota, who voiced Satsuki, the older sister to Elle’s character.

11. In early 2005, Fanning filmed scenes in Charlotte’s Web as the “future granddaughter” of Fern Arable played by Dakota.

12. In early 2006, Fanning filmed scenes in both The Nines and Déjà Vu.

13. In mid-2006, she filmed The Lost Room, a science-fiction TV miniseries.

14. In early 2007, Fanning reunited with her Babel co-stars, Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett, in a small part in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button as the younger version of Blanchett’s character.

15. Variety reported in April 2009 that Fanning would be starring in Academy Award-winning screenwriter Sofia Coppola’s 2010 film, Somewhere.

16. In December 2011, Fanning appeared in Cameron Crowe’s We Bought a Zoo. She played Lily, a 13-year-old who is working at the zoo’s restaurant and lives on the property with her only parental figure, Kelly (Scarlett Johansson).

17. In September 2012, Fanning starred as Ginger along with Alice Englert, who played Rosa in the drama film Ginger & Rosa that took place during 1962 in London.

18. Fanning starred alongside Angelina Jolie in the 2014 Walt Disney film, Maleficent, directed by Robert Stromberg. Jolie played Maleficent, while Fanning played Princess Aurora, the Sleeping Beauty.

19. In 2015, Fanning co-starred in Jay Roach’s Trumbo as Dalton Trumbo’s (Bryan Cranston) daughter Nikola, and starred in 3 Generations (previously known as About Ray), alongside Naomi Watts and Susan Sarandon, playing the role of a young transgender man.

20. In 2016, she appeared as Jesse in the psychological thriller The Neon Demon, directed by Nicolas Winding Refn.

21. That same year, she appeared in Mike Mills’s 20th Century Women, opposite Greta Gerwig and Annette Bening.

22. In 2017, Fanning appeared in Shawn Christensen’s feature-length drama, The Vanishing of Sidney Hall, which premiered on January 25 at the Sundance Film Festival.

23. In 2018, Fanning starred alongside Peter Dinklage in I Think We’re Alone Now, directed by Reed Morano.

24. She also starred in Galveston opposite Ben Foster, directed by Mélanie Laurent, which had its world premiere at South by Southwest on March 10, 2018.

25. Fanning is set to reprise the role of Princess Aurora in Maleficent: Mistress of Evil. It is scheduled to be released on October 18, 2019.

26. Fanning also has two more films in post-production; All the Bright Places, opposite Justice Smith, directed by Brett Haley, based upon the novel of the same name by Jennifer Niven, and Molly, directed by Sally Potter, opposite Javier Bardem and Salma Hayek.