Anna Nicole Smith’s 18-year-old daughter, Dannielynn Birkhead, is all grown up and, once again, stealing the spotlight at the 2025 Kentucky Derby.
Dannielynn and her father, Larry Birkhead, stepped out in style at the 151st Kentucky Derby held at Louisville’s Churchill Downs on Saturday, May 3. Dannielynn stunned in an off-the-shoulder teal MacDuggal gown, while her dad, 52, opted for a tan suit.
“Continuing the @kentuckyderby weekend tradition going strong. We are recovering from a rockin’ good time at last night’s Barnstable-Brown Gala. Now, off to the races with Dannielynn,” Larry gushed via Instagram. “She made me cut my hair with @hairbyryanaustin because before that, she said I looked like a low-rent Keith Urban! Ouch! Betting on a great time and good weather for a special family tradition.”
The night before, Dannielynn wore her mom’s black halter gown. “I can’t know my mom, sadly, and this is one of the only reasons and ways I can,” she told Access Hollywood on Friday, May 2. “This is the closest I’ll ever be getting to a hug from her, so I’ve been, like, on and off tears the whole day.”
The teen turned 18 late last year, kicking off the festivities with a celebratory tribute from her father.
“Happy 18th Birthday, Dannielynn! You are my entire heart. I love you more than I can ever express,” Larry gushed via Instagram in September 2024. “May you continue on your journey being ‘humble and kind’ and spread the love that you were given to many others. I am beyond proud of you. Happy 18th Birthday ❤️ Love, Dad.”
Dannielynn also celebrated the milestone with a blowout birthday bash inspired by Beetlejuice and its 2024 sequel.
“Dannielynn had a great time celebrating her 18th birthday with friends and family by attending the @beetlejuiceafterlife.exp and @beetlejuicemovie, which made for an out-of-this-world experience,” Larry wrote in another Instagram post. “Of course, Dannielynn found a Hot Topic store to get a spooky outfit for all the fun! 😆.”
Larry and Dannielynn have also been fixtures at the Derby for many years, last attending in both 2023 and 2024.
“We are having a great time. Dannielynn is enjoying one of [her] first years getting into the fashion of the Derby,” Larry told Us at last year’s iconic race. “She wore a dress that was Janet Jackson’s on Friday and got a major haircut because she wanted ‘another look’ for Derby Day.”
Two decades earlier, Larry met Smith at the Barnstable-Brown Derby Eve Gala, which is always held the day before the horse race. The late model died in 2007 at the age of 39, just five months after Dannielynn was born. Since Smith’s passing, Larry has noticed his daughter taking after her late mother.
“She’s got some personality traits of her mom’s, and she’s funny, but I think she’s a good mix of the two of us,” Larry previously told Us exclusively in 2020. “So many people come up to her and say, you know, ‘I was a big fan of your mom’s,’ and, ‘I loved your mom,’ or, ‘She inspired me to lose weight or be a model or just being a single parent.’ And so, you know, a lot of people helped me in that regard. … She’s just a really great kid.”
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