Kirsten Dunst: Snapshot

Name
Kirsten Dunst
Date of Birth
April 30, 1982
Birth Place
Point Pleasant, N.J.
At 12, Kirsten Dunst scored a Golden Globe nod for her breakthrough role in Interview with the Vampire and got the chance to kiss Brad Pitt. Ironically, the young actress told PEOPLE, "It was gross 'cause his lips were so dry."

As a teen, Dunst starred in the beauty-pageant satire Drop Dead Gorgeous, Sofia Coppola's The Virgin Suicides and the cheerleading romp Bring It On. But in 2002, Dunst transformed from indie darling to international star as Mary Jane Watson in Spider-Man. As for her private life, the alabaster-skinned actress, who dated Jake Gyllenhaal on-and-off for two years, briefly entered rehab to seek help for depression in 2008.

In 2011, the actress channels her personal struggles with depression for the drama Melancholia, which earns Dunst rave reviews.

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Kirsten Dunst: Five Fun Facts

  1. On the set of ER, George Clooney taught Kirsten Dunst to drive using his studio golf cart.
  2. Kirsten Dunst borrowed a John Galliano dress from director Sofia Coppola for her prom in 2000. Coppola previously wore the dress to the Golden Globes.
  3. Kirsten Dunst was offered Mena Suvari's role in 1999's Academy Award-winning film American Beauty but turned it down because of the film's suggestive sexual scenes.
  4. Kirsten Dunst was the only one of five young actresses to get a trailer in Sofia Coppola's The Virgin Suicides. But instead of keeping it to herself, Dunst turned it into a hangout for all the girls to share.
  5. At the Wag the Dog premiere in 1997, Dustin Hoffman set up his costar Kirsten Dunst, 15, with his son Jake, 16. They dated briefly. "He wants me to be his daughter-in-law!" Dunst told PEOPLE.

Kirsten Dunst: Biography

1985

Kirsten Dunst

Cereal Pitch

Dunst's mother Inez, an artist and former gallery owner, takes her 3-year-old daughter to auditions. Dunst's first gig, a cereal commercial, leads to a contract with Ford Modeling Agency.

1989

Kirsten Dunst

March 10

Debuting Daughter

Dunst makes her feature film debut as Mia Farrow's daughter in Woody Allen's short in New York Stories. She's also cast as Tom Hanks' daughter in The Bonfire of the Vanities. The following year, her mother moves Dunst and her younger brother, Christian (right), to San Fernando Valley, Calif. In 1995, Inez files for divorce from Dunst's father, Klaus. "I am very close to my dad, too," Dunst tells PEOPLE. "I don't feel I've suffered from divorce."

1994

Kirsten Dunst

November 11

Kissing Brad Pitt

With more than 100 commercials under her belt, Dunst, 12, stars opposite Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt in Interview With the Vampire. Her portrayal of the scheming young bloodsucker Claudia earns her a Golden Globe nomination and an on-screen kiss with Pitt. Later that year, she appears in Little Women, with Winona Ryder and Claire Danes

Read More on Kirsten Dunst's Life

Photo Credits

Top Left: Frank Bauer/Getty

BIOGRAPHY (top to bottom): WENN; Alan Levenson/Getty; Francois Duhamel

Edited by Janet Mock and Julia Wang

Kirsten Dunst

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