If you were around for the absolute media firestorm of 2007, you remember the face of a tiny baby in the Bahamas. Dannielynn Birkhead was just five months old when her mother, the iconic Anna Nicole Smith, passed away in Florida. Back then, it was a circus. DNA tests, satellite trucks, and a custody battle that felt like a twisted soap opera.
Fast forward to 2026. That baby is now a 19-year-old woman.
Honestly, it’s kinda wild to think about how much time has passed. Most celebrity kids are documenting every single meal on TikTok by the time they're ten, but Dannielynn? She’s a bit of an anomaly. Thanks to her dad, Larry Birkhead, she’s grown up in Louisville, Kentucky, far away from the paparazzi-heavy streets of Los Angeles or New York.
Where is Anna Nicole Smith's daughter now?
Right now, Dannielynn is navigating that weird, transitional phase of young adulthood. You know, the "what am I doing with my life?" phase. After graduating high school, she actually took a gap year. Larry mentioned to People that she wanted some space before jumping into the next chapter. It makes sense. When your entire birth was a global news event, maybe you just want to sit on a porch in Kentucky for a second.
As of early 2026, she’s officially a college student.
She hasn't gone public with which school she’s attending. Larry is notoriously protective—and for good reason. He wants her to have a "normal" experience where she isn't just "the daughter of Anna Nicole Smith" in the dorm halls. But there’s a lot more to her than just being a student. For years, she was really into forensics. Like, Dateline levels of obsessed. She even took classes for it in high school. But kids change their minds.
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Lately, she’s been dipping her toes back into the world that made her mother famous.
The Shift Toward the Spotlight
For a long time, the answer to "is she going to model?" was a hard no. Larry was hesitant. He saw the industry swallow Anna Nicole whole. But 19 is that age where you start making your own calls. Dannielynn has reportedly started showing a genuine interest in modeling and acting.
She isn't just jumping into random catalogs, though. It’s calculated. It’s personal.
Take the 2025 Kentucky Derby, for example. It's basically their "thing." They go every year—it’s where Larry and Anna Nicole first met back in 2003. At the Barnstable Brown Gala, Dannielynn wore her mother’s actual black halter dress from 2004. It wasn't just a fashion choice; it was a tribute. She’s also been seen wearing her mother’s jewelry, like that gold pendant necklace she rocked at Churchill Downs.
People say she’s the spitting image of Anna. The blonde hair, the smile. It’s almost eerie. But Larry is quick to point out that while she looks like her mom, she has her own personality. She's a bit of a "rogue"—literally. For Halloween 2025, she went as the X-Men character Rogue, complete with the green-and-yellow suit.
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Money, Legacy, and the "Rich Kid" Rumors
There is a huge misconception about her wealth. You’ve probably seen the headlines claiming she’s worth $100 million because of her mother’s marriage to billionaire J. Howard Marshall.
That’s basically a myth.
The legal battle over Marshall’s estate dragged on for decades. In the end, Anna Nicole’s estate didn't get that massive payout. While Dannielynn is financially secure—some reports put her net worth around $4 million to $5 million from her own modeling (like that Guess Kids campaign when she was six) and various media deals—she isn't the billionaire heiress the tabloids like to pretend she is.
She lives a relatively grounded life. Larry works as a photographer. They live in a nice house in Louisville, but it’s not a gated mega-mansion with a dozen bodyguards. They go to amusement parks like Universal Studios. They deal with kidney stones—Larry actually had to leave the ER to celebrate her 19th birthday last September.
A Different Kind of Celebrity
What’s most interesting about anna nicole smith's daughter now is what she doesn't do.
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- She doesn't have a public, solo Instagram (Larry still manages their joint account).
- She doesn't chase "clout" with other influencer kids.
- She doesn't talk to the press unless it’s a controlled environment like 20/20.
She’s basically the blueprint for how to raise a famous child without them ending up in the tabloids for the wrong reasons. Larry has always said his job was to be a "supportive parent, not a stage parent." He’s worried about the "negative connotations" people attach to her mother’s name, but Dannielynn seems to be reclaiming that legacy on her own terms.
She’s becoming her own person. A student. A potential actor. A girl who loves 80s rock and horror movies.
If you're following her journey, keep an eye on the 2026 Kentucky Derby this May. It’s usually the one time of year we get a real glimpse into how she’s evolving. Whether she decides to go full Hollywood or stay a Kentucky girl with a forensics degree, she’s finally the one holding the steering wheel.
Actionable Insights for Following Dannielynn’s Journey:
- Watch the Kentucky Derby: This remains the only guaranteed annual public appearance for the duo.
- Check Verified Sources: Avoid "net worth" sites that claim she inherited billions; her financial status is much more modest and tied to her own work and her father's career.
- Respect the Privacy: She has intentionally kept her college and private life off-grid to maintain a sense of normalcy, so avoid unofficial fan accounts that claim to have "insider" info.