While it’s hard to believe that Dakota Fanning hasn’t previously been recognized by the TV Academy, having now been acting for 25 years, she did in fact earn her first Emmy nomination this morning, speaking with Deadline about her upcoming Paramount horror film Vicious, her upcoming Netflix murder mystery series The Perfect Couple, and her creative ambitions going forward.
Written and directed by Bryan Bertino, Vicious watches as a woman spends the night fighting for her existence as she slips down a rabbit hole contained inside a gift from a late-night visitor. Of her time working on the film, dated for release on August 8, 2025, Fanning said, “I absolutely loved that experience, and that was very different from anything I’ve done before. It was an insane experience in the best way. I loved it and really can’t wait to see it.”
Fanning went on to say that “you make something and you think it’s one way, and then sometimes you see it and it changes and you discover new things, and I’m still kind of high on the experience of making [Vicious]. It was really, really fulfilling.”
The Perfect Couple, a series adaptation of the novel from Elin Hilderbrand, was likewise a memorable experience for Fanning. “I’ve worked with [director-EP] Susanne Bier before and I absolutely would do anything for her, so getting to work with her again was so great,” she said. “Eve Hewson is one of my closest friends, so getting to be with basically one of my best girlfriends for a few months and make this show was such a joy. I’ve always wanted to work with Nicole Kidman, so getting to do that and get to know her was super fun, and I think it’s going to be something that people will enjoy watching. I think the fun that we had making it will really show through.”
In terms of a bucket list item for her at the moment, Fanning said, “That’s easy. Work with my sister” — that, of course, being Elle Fanning, the actress previously Emmy-nominated for her work on Hulu’s The Great.
The elder Fanning’s Emmy nomination came for her turn in Steven Zaillian’s Netflix limited series Ripley, based on the Tom Ripley novels from Patricia Highsmith. The show watches as Tom Ripley (Andrew Scott), a grifter scraping by in early 1960s New York, is hired by a wealthy man to travel to Italy to try to convince his vagabond son (Johnny Flynn) to return home. Tom’s acceptance of the job is the first step into a complex life of deceit, fraud and murder.
Fanning plays Marge Sherwood, the girlfriend of Flynn’s Dickie Greenleaf, who comes to suspect something is very much amiss with Dickie’s new friend Tom. The actress called making the series a “singular, once-in-a-lifetime experience,” though she noted at the same time that it took “so much dedication from everyone” to pull together.
“I’ve never been a part of anything [like it]. It was a very large amount of time that we spent working on it, and we were in Italy getting to work with so many amazing Italian actors and the Italian crew,” Fanning recalled. “All the best things are also challenging. I found parts of myself I didn’t know existed, and just really, I treasure the experience so much.”
Ripley today received 13 Emmy nominations in total, scoring in Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series and Lead Actor (Scott), while also drawing recognition in the areas of production design, casting, cinematography, period costumes, directing, editing, sound editing, sound mixing, special visual effects and writing. Nominated for Supporting Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie, Fanning’s competitors in the category include Lily Gladstone (Under the Bridge), Jessica Gunning (Baby Reindeer), Aja Naomi King (Lessons in Chemistry), Diane Lane (Feud: Capote vs. The Swans), Nava Mau (Baby Reindeer) and Kali Reis (True Detective: Night Country).
This year’s Primetime Emmys are set to take place at the Peacock Theater downtown on September 15.
