Elle Fanning on working with Angelina Jolie

CEBU, Philippines - When Angelina Jolie commits to a role, she goes all in from day one.

In “Maleficent,” the untold story of the iconic villain from the 1959 Disney classic “Sleeping Beauty,” Jolie attempts to humanize the Mistress of All Evil. Elle Fanning, who plays Princess Aurora, says she learned a lot by watching the Oscar winner on set.

“She really got into her character — she was so very into the details of her clothes,” Fanning told Yahoo Movies. “[Angelina] came into rehearsal on the first days that we were just reading the script with her Maleficent staff! Walking in, she was in normal clothes, but then had that, and she was like, ‘I have to get used to it, because it’s a part of my character.’”

Jolie’s character wasn’t exactly a hit with everyone on set. Her daughter, Vivienne Jolie-Pitt, had to play the younger version of Fanning’s character because other children were too scared of Jolie in costume.

“It had to be Viv,” Jolie told Entertainment Weekly, expanding on a story she first shared at Disney’s D23 Expo in August. “The other 3-and 4-year-old [actors] wouldn’t come near me. It had to be a child that liked me and wasn’t afraid of my horns and my eyes and my claws. When [my son] Pax saw me for the first time, he ran away and got upset.”

Fanning, of course, was unfazed. “I thought [Jolie’s costume] was so cool,” she said.

But will “Maleficent” scare away audiences too? Some Wall Street analysts are predicting the fantasy flick won’t be profitable for Disney since young children might not flock to theaters; the dark film certainly isn’t “Frozen 2.”

However, Fanning said that kids won’t be too frightened while watching the film. “[Ages] 9, 10, and up,” she suggested.

While the movie, reportedly budgeted around $130 million, might not be a surefire hit, there is no denying the allure of Angelina. It’s been four years since Brad Pitt’s fiancée has been seen onscreen (her last role, not counting voice work: 2010’s “The Tourist”). The first Jolie-heavy trailer has more than 13 million views on YouTube.

The Jolie factor was not lost on Fanning, either. “Working with Angelina— it was kind of a dream to even get to say you met her. To say that, and let alone be in scenes with her was really, really cool.” (FREEMAN)