The entertainment world is mourning the loss of Hayden Panettiere, the beloved actress known for her roles in hit television shows like Heroes and Nashville. She passed away at the age of 36.
In a heartfelt statement shared with ABC News on Monday, Panettiere’s father, Skip, confirmed the tragic news of her death.
“We announce with deep sorrow the untimely passing of our cherished Hayden,” the statement began. “She was a remarkable light, a dynamic force who spread boundless love and happiness to those who knew her, as well as to her countless fans around the globe.”
The cause of her death remains undisclosed, and her publicist did not immediately respond to requests for comment from the Associated Press (AP).
Approaching what would have been her 37th birthday this week, Panettiere launched her acting career at a young age, featuring in commercials and soap operas as a child actress.
Her role as a cheerleader with superpowers in Heroes propelled her to fame in 2006, with the series revolving around the mantra “Save the cheerleader, save the world.”
“I think Heroes is really hot because it’s just a really great combination of everything that people love — they love reality, they love sci-fi and things like X-Men where they get to dream of something bigger,” Panettiere told AP in 2008.
“And at the core of it are these human stories that people can relate to, very rugged. And it’s just grabbed everyone in every age group.”
She went on to win three Teen Choice Awards for that role and was a Grammy Award nominee for a children’s spoken word album recorded a few years after the release of the animated movie A Bug’s Life.
Panettiere later played a brash country upstart opposite Connie Britton on Nashville, which aired on US network ABC for four seasons before being cancelled and revived on CMT.
She did her own singing in the show, which scored some hits on country charts, spawned US tours and earned Panettiere two supporting actress Golden Globe nominations.
Panettiere had 11 songs recorded for Nashville appear on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs charts during the show’s run, including two featuring Britton.
Panettiere’s younger brother, Jansen, who was also an actor, died of a heart condition in 2023, at age 28.
She had been open about her struggles with alcohol addiction and depression, including after the birth of her daughter with Ukrainian boxer Wladimir Klitschko in 2014.
In an interview with podcaster Jay Shetty after her memoir came out in May, Panettiere talked about the custody arrangement for her 11-year-old daughter, who lives full-time with Klitschko in Ukraine.
News of the 2018 decision prompted headlines about Panettiere giving up custody of her daughter.
“I think there’s been this very common misconception that I just gave up my child,” she said. “That could not be farther from the truth.”
Panettiere said Klitschko suggested their daughter live with him full-time when the child was two, as Panettiere struggled with mental health challenges and addiction.
She said she was in a “horrible cycle for years of battling depression and anxiety and alcoholism and substance abuse” while “just trying to find my way back, my way out of the darkness”.
She entered rehab in 2015, while filming Nashville.
“I was the one who put myself in the first treatment centre. I was drowning,” she said in a 2023 interview with Women’s Health magazine.
On Shetty’s podcast, Panettiere recalled the explosion of her fame when she was cast on Heroes, including the first time she was tracked by the paparazzi. When she’d imagined the moment as a younger actress, she’d planned to look chic.
Instead, she said, “it was just sheer terror”.
Panettiere also appeared in two of the Scream movies, starred as the title character in the 2009 film I Love You Beth Cooper and played the young daughter of a football coach in Remember the Titans.
She had spoken positively about her experience filming Remember the Titans, saying she felt so similar to the character she played — Sheryl Yoast, the opinionated, American football-loving daughter of Will Patton’s coach Bill Yoast.
Readers struggling with their use of alcohol and other substances can contact the National Alcohol and Other Drug Hotline on 1800 250 015 for free and confidential support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. More information is available via Lifeline.