Dunst began her career as a child fashion model at the age of three in television commercials. She was signed with Ford Models and Elite Model Management. In 1989, Dunst made her film debut in Woody Allen's Oedipus Wrecks, a short film that was released as one-third of the anthology film New York Stories. Soon after, she landed a small part in The Bonfire of the Vanities as Tom Hanks' daughter. In 1993, Dunst played Hedril in "Dark Page", the seventh season episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation. At the age of fifteen, Dunst was the voice of Kiki in the 1997 anime series Kiki's Delivery Service. She also had a recurring role as a child prostitute, Charlie Chiemingo, on ER.

Dunst portrayed young Amy March in the 1994 film adaptation of Little Women. The film received widespread praise; critic Janet Maslin of The New York Times wrote that the film was the greatest adaptation of the novel, and also remarked on Dunst's performance: "The perfect contrast to take-charge Jo comes