Earlier this year, Hayden Panettiere projected hope for her future while she was busy promoting her memoir.
“There’s so much more I want to experience,” the actress confided in a candid interview just a quarter of a year before her untimely departure at 36.
Reports surfaced on Monday indicating that Narcan, a life-saving opioid overdose antidote, was discovered in a loft apartment in Greenville, South Carolina, where she was found deceased on Sunday afternoon. The nasal spray was located on a mattress in the apartment where she resided, according to TMZ.
However, back in May, during a heartfelt conversation with Jay Shetty, Panettiere was eagerly discussing all the promising opportunities that the future seemed to hold.
She was publicizing her revealing book, This Is Me: A Reckoning, when asked how she might define her current life’s journey. Her response was filled with optimism, envisioning an era of new beginnings.
‘I finally feel like I have shaken off all of this darkness and this negativity,’ she said on Shetty’s On Purpose podcast.
‘That means that I’ve closed one door and another door is opened and I can feel it opened and I can feel all the… possibilities, all the exciting possibilities. I feel like I have a lot more life to live.’
An optimistic Hayden Panettiere declared ‘I have a lot more life to live’ in a soul-baring interview just three months before her shock death at age 36
The former child star, who was known for her roles on the hit NBC series Heroes and musical drama Nashville, leaves behind an 11-year-old daughter.
Representatives for Panettiere announced on Sunday: ‘It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden.
‘She was an incredible light and a force of nature who brought immeasurable love and joy to all who knew her – and to the millions who watched her onscreen.’
Detectives confirmed to the Daily Mail that they responded to the apartment block in Greenville yesterday afternoon after they received a 911 call from an ‘acquaintance’ of Panettiere, describing her as ‘unresponsive’.
In the dispatch audio of the call made at 1.51pm, a female dispatcher described Panettiere as suffering a ‘cardiac arrest.’ A few moments later, a male dispatcher could be heard saying that Panettiere had suffered a suspected overdose at the home in Greenville.
Officers and paramedics carried out chest compressions while trying to save Panettiere’s life.
The actress – who was due to turn 37 this Friday – was pronounced dead at the scene just over 40 minutes later at 2.32pm.
‘I finally feel like I have shaken off all of this darkness and this negativity,’ she admitted to Shetty
Hayden said she can feel ‘all the exciting possibilities’ that await her
Police and the local coroner’s office are probing the death, but said the ‘preliminary investigation has not indicated any signs of foul play or suspicious circumstances.’
Panettiere had daughter Kaya following a life-threatening birth, but later gave full custody to her former fiancé, Ukrainian boxer Wladimir Klitschko.
The star first appeared in soap operas, then gained wider recognition for her role in the 2000 sports drama Remember The Titans with Denzel Washington, and as the voice of Dot in Pixar’s 1998 film A Bug’s Life.
Panettiere later found fame playing cheerleader Claire Bennet in the superhero drama Heroes before starring as country singer Juliette Barnes for six seasons on Nashville.
She earned two Golden Globe nominations for best supporting actress on the show, while her singing produced 11 entries on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs charts.
Panettiere’s film credits include 2006’s Bring It On: All Or Nothing, the comedy-drama film Raising Helen, and appearances in Scream 4 and Scream VI as Kirby Reed.
The former child star was found dead in Greenville, South Carolina, on Sunday afternoon
Hayden was known for her roles on the hit NBC series Heroes and musical drama Nashville
On Monday, a spokesman for the City of Greenville Police told the Daily Mail: ‘On August 16, 2026, at approximately 1.51pm, officers from the Greenville Police Department, accompanied by EMS personnel, responded to a report of an unresponsive female at Judson Mill Lofts, located at 701 Easley Bridge Road.
‘Upon arrival, medical assistance was administered; however, the individual, later identified as Hayden Panettiere, was pronounced deceased at the scene.
‘The case is under investigation by the Greenville Police Department in conjunction with the Greenville County Coroner’s Office.
‘The preliminary investigation has not indicated any signs of foul play or suspicious circumstances. An acquaintance of Ms Panettiere placed the 911 call. At this time, no further details are available for release.’
Judson Mill Lofts is a former textile mill dating back to 1912, which was recently converted into apartments. These include studios and three-bedroom homes that can be rented from $1,295 to $3,485 a month.
No cause of death has been announced.