Director Griff Furst recently disclosed an unsettling interaction involving Brian Hickerson on the set of a film, where Hickerson allegedly made a concerning comment about his girlfriend, actress Hayden Panettiere.
Furst, known for directing “Lake Placid 3,” took to Instagram to recount the incident that occurred during the making of the 2025 movie “A Breed Apart.”
In his video message, Furst described the moment as a camera rehearsal unfolded with Panettiere. Furst was focused on the monitor when Hickerson, standing about 15 feet away, approached him.
The director alleged that Hickerson leaned in close and commented, “You let me know what you need her to do — I can get her to do anything,” which left Furst feeling uneasy.
At 44, Furst recounted his “immediate reaction” to the unsettling comment as simply, “What the f–k?”
“But what I said was, ‘Alright,’ because what else do you say? Because you’re in the middle of a rehearsal, and somebody you didn’t hire says that to you.”
Furst said Hickerson’s alleged comment was presented like a “bizarre power flex.”
“We could all see it and we all wanted ot help but spotting a red flag and physically pulling somebody out of a toxic situation are very different things,” he explained.
“I don’t think anybody knows right now what happened to Hayden and more so, I don’t believe that Brian wanted this tragedy to happen at all. But the dynamic that they were in was noticeably destructive. He is just not the kind of person that you would want directing the life of a co-worker or a friend or a mother or a daughter.”
“It made me think of the similarities to Brittany Murphy — just in the sense that I made a movie with her about a year before she passed and she too was a brilliant, incredibly gifted woman”
However, Furst said Murphy — who died in December 2009 from untreated pneumonia, severe iron-deficiency anemia and drug intoxication — got “sucked into a dark place alongside the partner that she chose,” referring to the late Simon Monjack, who was accused of isolating the “8 Mile” actress by being manipulative and controlling her career. (Monjack died in May 2010, at the age of 40 from acute pneumonia and severe anemia.)
Furst said that he’s “seen scores of people who have [been] lost to substance [abuse], and on their way down” due to the company that they kept.
“These tragedies seem to always be preceded by an identifiable pattern, which is the reason that I’m talking about this right now, because it’s in the spotlight,” he added.
Page Six has reached out to Hickerson’s attorneys for comment but did not immediately hear back.
Panettiere was found unresponsive by Brian’s brother, Zach Hickerson, in a South Carolina Airbnb on Aug. 16.
Zach claimed his brother was asleep in the other room at the residence while the “Heroes” alum was found in a living room chair.
According to a police report obtained by Page Six, the actress was taking a “bag of medication” at the time of her death.
The report also stated that Brian, who had been arrested several times for allegedly abusing Panettiere, “did not become emotional” until the “Nashville” actress was officially declared dead. She was 36.
An official cause of death has not yet been released.
Last week, Furst claimed Panettiere’s team was trying to stage an intervention before her untimely passing.