‘Heroes’ star Hayden Panettiere dies at 36, cause of death unknown

Actor Hayden Panettiere, known for her roles in Heroes, Nashville and the Scream franchise, has died at the age of 36. She died on Sunday, August 16, her representative confirmed. The cause of death has not been disclosed.

Panettiere’s father, Skip Panettiere, paid tribute to his daughter in a statement, describing her as “an incredible light and a force of nature” who brought love and joy to those around her and to audiences worldwide.

Born on August 21, 1989, Panettiere began acting as a child. She appeared in the soap operas One Life to Live and Guiding Light before making her film debut as the voice of Princess Dot in Pixar’s A Bug’s Life in 1998.

She went on to appear in films including Remember the Titans, Tiger Cruise and Ice Princess. Her breakthrough came in 2006 when she was cast as cheerleader Claire Bennet in NBC’s Heroes. The character, who possessed regenerative abilities, became one of the show’s most recognisable figures and brought Panettiere international fame.

After Heroes ended in 2010, she appeared in Scream 4 and later reprised her role as Kirby Reed in Scream 6 in 2023.

Panettiere also found success on television with Nashville, in which she played singer-songwriter Juliette Barnes from 2012 to 2018. She appeared throughout the show's six seasons and also performed several songs as part of the role. Her other screen credits included Amber Alert, A Breed Apart and Sleepwalker, which was her final film role.

Beyond her acting career, Panettiere had spoken openly about her struggles with postpartum depression and addiction. In 2022, she reflected on the difficult period in her life, saying, “I was on top of the world, and I ruined it.”

She also discussed the decision to give full custody of her daughter, Kaya Evdokia Klitschko, to her former fiancé, boxer Wladimir Klitschko. The couple welcomed Kaya in December 2014 and later separated. Panettiere agreed to give Klitschko full custody in 2018 while she was receiving treatment for alcoholism, substance abuse and postpartum depression. She subsequently rejected the suggestion that she had simply “given away” her daughter.

Panettiere continued to speak about her recovery and personal life in the years that followed. In an interview shortly before her death, she described herself as “a work in progress” and said she was taking life one day at a time.

Her final years were also marked by the death of her younger brother, actor Jansen Panettiere, who died in 2023 at the age of 28. Speaking about his death in 2024, she said, “When I lost him, I felt like I lost half of my soul.”

Panettiere is survived by her daughter, Kaya, and her parents.