Honestly, if you grew up in the early 2000s, you probably have a very specific, slightly fever-dreamish memory of a giant, bipedal cat with a New York accent causing absolute mayhem in a neon-pastel suburb. At the center of that chaos was a nine-year-old girl with blonde pigtails and a clip-on tie. That was Dakota Fanning. Long before she was a vampire in Twilight or a gritty investigator in The Alienist, she was Sally Walden, the "control freak" child tasked with keeping her house from being demolished by Mike Myers in a six-foot fur suit.
It’s been over twenty years since Dakota Fanning in The Cat in the Hat hit theaters, and the movie remains one of the most polarizing adaptations in Hollywood history. Critics absolutely shredded it. It got ten Razzie nominations. Dr. Seuss’s widow, Audrey Geisel, was so appalled by the finished product that she famously banned any future live-action adaptations of her husband’s books. Yet, for a certain generation, the film is a cult classic. And Dakota Fanning? She was basically the only adult in the room, despite being the youngest person on set.
The Role of Sally Walden: Chaos Meets Order
In the 2003 film, Sally Walden is the polar opposite of her brother, Conrad (played by Spencer Breslin). While Conrad is a walking disaster zone, Sally is obsessed with lists, rules, and being a "Type A" personality before she’s even hit double digits. She’s the kid who carries a handheld electronic organizer in 2003.
Dakota was fresh off her breakout role in I Am Sam, where she played a literal angel of a child. Transitioning to Sally Walden meant playing someone a bit more... rigid. She had to hold her own against Mike Myers, who was essentially doing a high-energy, improv-heavy version of a Borscht Belt comedian.
Why Fanning Was the Perfect Choice
- The "Old Soul" Energy: Even at eight years old (when filming began), Dakota had a reputation for being incredibly professional.
- Comedic Timing: Her deadpan reactions to the Cat’s "Kupkake-inator" and his questionable jokes provided the necessary "straight man" energy the movie needed.
- Visual Contrast: Her tiny stature against the massive, surreal sets designed by Bo Welch made the world feel even more distorted.
What Really Happened on the Set of The Cat in the Hat?
The production was, by all accounts, a massive undertaking. The town of Anville wasn’t CGI; they actually built a neighborhood in Simi Valley, California. They painted everything a specific shade of "purplish-pink" and "lime green."
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Working with Mike Myers was reportedly an experience. He spent hours in a makeup chair every morning. Because of the suit’s heat, he had to have a portable air conditioning unit hooked up to him between takes. Dakota has mentioned in past interviews that she found him hilarious, specifically recalling a scene where he turns into a plumber. She’d actually make lists of the cast and crew members’ names just for fun—very Sally Walden of her.
The Famous "S.L.O.W." Car
One of the most memorable sequences involves the Super Luxurious Omnidirectional Whatchamajigger (S.L.O.W.). It was a real, physical prop that the kids had to sit in. While the movie looks like a cartoon, Dakota and Spencer were often strapped into these mechanical rigs that moved violently to simulate the Cat’s erratic driving. It wasn't just green screen; it was physical, messy work.
Critical Backlash vs. Gen Z Nostalgia
When the movie dropped, the "Dakota Fanning Cat in the Hat" era was met with a wall of negativity. People hated the adult-skewing humor. They hated the "dirty hoe" joke. They hated how much it deviated from the simple charm of the Dr. Seuss book.
But if you look at TikTok or Twitter today, the narrative has flipped. People who watched this on DVD until the disc was scratched don’t care about the Razzie nominations. They care about the "Phunometer" and the terrifyingly chaotic Thing 1 and Thing 2.
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"It’s funny ha-ha," the Cat says, and for kids in 2003, it actually was.
Fanning’s performance is often cited as a high point because she didn't "play down" to the material. She treated the role of Sally Walden with the same seriousness she brought to her dramatic work. That’s probably why she didn't get bogged down by the movie's poor reputation. While Bo Welch’s directing career took a hit, Dakota’s trajectory only went up.
Looking Back: What Most People Get Wrong
A common misconception is that this movie was a "flop" that hurt the careers of those involved. While it didn't set the box office on fire—grossing about $134 million against a $109 million budget—it wasn't a total disaster financially. It just failed to meet the massive expectations set by Jim Carrey’s The Grinch.
For Dakota, this was a paycheck and a chance to play in a literal giant playground. She followed it up with Man on Fire and War of the Worlds, proving that being in a "bad" Seuss movie wasn't going to stop her from becoming a Hollywood powerhouse.
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Actionable Takeaways for Movie Fans
If you're revisiting the film or just curious about this era of Dakota Fanning's career, here’s how to appreciate it through a 2026 lens:
- Watch for the Production Design: Bo Welch was an Oscar-nominated production designer (Edward Scissorhands), and it shows. The sets are incredible.
- Notice the Cinematography: Believe it or not, the movie was shot by Emmanuel Lubezki. He later won three Oscars in a row for Gravity, Birdman, and The Revenant.
- Respect the Craft: Watch how Dakota manages to stay in character while a man in a giant cat suit is screaming inches from her face. It’s a masterclass in child acting focus.
The movie is a weird, loud, colorful relic of a time when Hollywood was trying to figure out how to turn 60-page picture books into 80-minute feature films. Whether you love it or think it’s a nightmare, there’s no denying that the Dakota Fanning Cat in the Hat performance is a foundational piece of early 2000s pop culture.
To see more of Fanning's evolution from this role, you can track her career through the mid-2000s "serious child actor" phase, which arguably started right after she finished cleaning up the Cat's mess in Anville.