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Actor Hayden Panettiere, who was known for roles in television’s “Heroes” and “Nashville” and had recently published a memoir, has died, her father said in a statement Sunday night. She was 36.
“It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden,” her father Skip Panettiere said in a statement provided by the actor’s representative.
The cause and manner of death were not provided. Her publicist, Kasey Kitchen, said Panettiere’s death was being investigated.
“There’s an investigation ongoing,” Kitchen said in a statement. “We should know more tomorrow.”
Police in Greenville, South Carolina , said in a statement that officers “accompanied by EMS personnel, responded to a report of an unresponsive female” at around 1:50 p.m. Sunday. “Upon arrival, medical assistance was administered; however, the individual, later identified as Hayden Panettiere, was pronounced deceased at the scene,” police said in a statement.
“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,” it said. The statement added that no further details were available for release at this time.
Panettiere revealed this year that she struggled with postpartum depression and addiction , which she said led to her decision to give up custody of her only child, daughter Kaya Evdokia Klitschko, in 2018, whom she had with former partner and Ukrainian professional boxer Wladimir Klitschko.
Panettiere recently published a memoir, “This is Me: A Reckoning,” which generated headlines over its revelations, including about her past relationships.
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In 2024, she described pain and grief after her younger brother died unexpectedly of an undiagnosed heart condition the previous year.
“When you lose somebody that that you saw in all the important moments in your life, standing right next to you, it just rocks your world,” she told the “TODAY” show.
Panettiere was born and raised in Palisades, New York, about 40 miles north of New York City, according to her Television Academy bio.
Panettiere started working at 11 months old, when she appeared in television commercials, it said.
She appeared on soap operas , including “One Life to Live” and “Guiding Light,” beginning at age 4. Her voice was featured on “A Bug’s Life,” the animated feature, and she eventually appeared in big-screen stories , including “Remember the Titans,” and “Bring it On: All or Nothing.”
One of her most impactful roles was as Juliette Barnes on television’s “Nashville.” Before that, she was Claire Bennet on the 2000s show “Heroes.”
Her time shooting “Nashville” included the pressure of having had a baby and experiencing postpartum depression, she said, and at times it was too much.
“That’s why I turned to substances — because the anxiety that I started having, the panic attacks that I started having,” she said in a tearful interview on the Jay Shetty Podcast in May.
Panettiere said she always wanted to be a mother but discussed her sadness amid her postpartum depression battle.
“I had this beautiful plan in my head, and then I had my daughter and I knew something was just terribly, terribly wrong,” she said on the podcast. “I was miserable. I was in tears all the time. Even though the alcohol helped my nervous system calm down, it is a depressant, so over time it made things worse, not better.”
Despite being apart from her daughter after giving up custody to Klitschko, Panettiere told Shetty, she formed a strong bond with her child.
“I will always want her here. I always miss her,” she said. “I always want to have my arms wrapped around her, but that’s just not the way life is right at this moment.”
She continued: “I have faith that she is going to come to me and that we’re going to have an incredible relationship and bond and friendship that a lot of parents don’t get to have with their kids.”
In 2018, the year “Nashville” ended it six-season run, Panettiere sold her home in the namesake city.
“We join in mourning the sudden passing of Hayden Panettiere,” the screen actors’ union SAG-AFTRA, which counted her as a member since 1994, said in a statement. “Our hearts are with her daughter, family, friends and fans.”
Viola Davis, who starred alongside Panettiere in the 2016 film “Custody,” paid tribute to her “amazing talent.”
“I wish the world had more time with you because I had a burning curiosity about who you were becoming. I saw this beautiful Phoenix rising from the ashes. Your tests became your testimony, and your testimony became your legacy. You will be remembered,” Davis said in a post on Instagram.
Actor Emme Ryland, who appeared with Panettiere in “Bring It On: All or Nothing,” reacted to news of her death on Instagram , saying: “So very sad. Rest in peace sweet soul.”
Panettiere was a spokesperson for oceanic conservation group the Whaleman Foundation, appeared in the 2010 Oscar-winning documentary on dolphin slaughter, “The Cove,” and received the Genesis Wyler Award from the Humane Society, according to the television academy.
“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,” her father said.
If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline or chat live at 988lifeline.org . You can also visit SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources for additional support.
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