Kirsten Caroline Dunst born on  April 30, 1982) is an American actress. Her mother Inez Dunst worked as flight attendant for Lufthansa and her father  Klaus Hermann Dunst worked as a medical service executive. In 1933 her parents separated so she moved to Los Angeles with her mother and brother. She graduated from Notre Dome High School in 2000.

She was only three years old when she appeared in the television commercials, and was signed with Ford Models and Elite Model Management. She debuted in the acting field when she was only six years old where she had a minor role in Woody Allen’s short film Oedipus Wrecks. In 1990 she starred in the comedy-drama movie  The Bonfire of the Vanities as Tom Hank’s daughter.

n 1994 she was cast in a horror drama Interviews with the Vampire beside Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt where she played Claudia. Many film critics praised her acting skills. Her performance earned her the MTV Movie Award for Best Breakthrough Performance, the Saturn Award for Best Young Actress, and her first Golden Globe Award nomination.

In 1994 she starred in the family drama film Little Women followed by in 1995 in a fantasy adventure film Jumanji the film was well received grossing upto $262 million worldwide. She also voiced many characters as Anastasia in the animated musical film Anastasia and KiKi in the animated movie KiKi’s Delivery Service.

In 1999 she appeared in the American dram The Virgin Suicides based on a novel. The film was screened as a special presentation at the 43rd San Francisco International Film Festival in 2000. In 2000 she appeared in the comedy Bring it On as Torrance Shipman. She again appeared in the teen comedy film Get Over It (2001), she later explained that one of the reasons for accepting the role was that it gave her the opportunity to sing. The same year she appeared in the historical drama The Cat’s Meow.

In 2002 she appeared in the superhero movie Spider-man that she is best known for. She continued her role in Spider-Man 2 (2004) and Spider-Man 3 (2007). In 2003 she appeared in the drama Levity followed by the drama film Mona Lisa Smile as Betty Warren.

She went on to land roles in such films as Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004), the romantic comedy Wimbledon (2004), and in Cameron Crowe’s Elizabethtown (2005). She also played the title character in Sofia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette (2006).

Dunst won the Best Actress Award at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival for her performance as Justine in Lars von Trier’s Melancholia (2011). In 2012, she appeared in Walter Salles’ film adaptation of On the Road (2012) and the independent comedy Bachelorette (2012). She also has several films in production, including The Two Faces of January (2014).

In March 2016, Dunst was cast with Nicole Kidman and Elle Fanning in the drama The Beguiled.

Dunst was treated for depression in early 2008 at the Cirque Lodge treatment center in Utah. Dunst dated actor Jake Gyllenhaal from 2002 to 2004. She dated Razorlight frontman Johnny Borell in 2007. She dated her On the Road co-star Garrett Hedlund from 2012 to 2016. In 2016, she began dating her Fargo co-star Jesse Plemons. By 2017, the couple had become engaged.