Elle Fanning endured a lonely childhood

Elle Fanning didn’t have any good friends until she was nine years old.

The American actress, who turned 18 in April, entered the world of showbiz before she turned three and admits that she was cocooned from normal social interactions with people her own age until she pestered her mother to send her to a regular school.

She shared: "I had no friends – friends like, beast friends. I’d never gone to a sleepover or anything, because you know, I was working."

But Elle thinks she subsequently found it easier to make friends because, unlike some children, it was something she could never take for granted.

She told the Sunday Times newspaper: "I was socially reaching out. But it was definitely scary. Like, I didn’t know the etiquette of school – about raising your hand, the schedule of it."

Elle also revealed she’s made a positive impression on the friends of her older sister, Dakota.

She explained: "Dakota’s friends with Katy Perry and Kristen Stewart is one of her best friends, too. Kristen was one of the friends I was never able to hang out with. I was like, not allowed. And then Kristen was like, ‘It’s ok. Elle is cool.’"

Despite her fame and fortune, Elle maintains that she enjoyed a healthy childhood.

The ‘We Bought a Zoo’ actress reflected: "I really do [think that], honestly. I wouldn’t want it any other way. I’ve thought about it. It’s so nice to already know that this is what I want to do for ever, and I’m so young."