Hayden Panettiere claims she was ‘groomed’ and reveals dark reality of growing up in Hollywood
Hayden Panettiere is candidly opening up on the struggles of growing up in Hollywood.
The 36-year-old actor, who started her acting career when she appeared in a commercial before she was one years old, spoke about being ‘groomed’ and pressured into being a child star.
Panettiere landed a role in the soap opera One Life to Live when she was just four years old.
Now, she’s delving into her life in new memoir, This Is Me: A Reckoning which will be released on May 19.
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Before the release, the Scream star sat down with The Hollywood Reporter, in which she opened up about the pressures she felt, and still does.
"I was groomed. I was like a little soldier and I always have been. No was never an option. It was just, 'Here are your scenes, here’s your dialogue, memorize it,” she said.
“Hit the marks, do what your director tells you to do.' I took my marching orders.”
She was later asked when she realized she was being groomed in a way that was ‘abnormal,’ as the star answered: “When I started self-harming in the form of substance abuse.”
Panettiere revealed she had become a ‘people pleaser’ and that she ‘lived to make other people happy’.
The star then recalled ‘exploding’ as the pressure continued to build, before admitting that she’s ‘still working on’ making her career fully hers.
Earlier this month, the star came out as bisexual, something she goes on to talk about in the memoir - as she said the response from the public has been ‘heartwarming’.
In an interview with US Weekly ahead of the publication, the Nashville star said she was ‘never able to share her sexuality with the world’ as it was never the right time.
“It was either I was too young, and I was being forced to be perfect at all times. I was not encouraged to just be myself,” she said.
Panettiere is mother to 11-year-old daughter Kayla, who she shares with Ukrainian boxer Wladimir Klitschko. The pair were in an on-and-off relationship for nine years, calling it quits for good in 2018.
Just recently, the star slammed claims she she 'abandoned' Kayla while dealing with addiction.
Kayla moved to Ukraine with her father after her parents’ break-up, and regularly sees her mother.
In an interview with Jay Shetty, the actor said: The idea that anybody would think that I would just give away my child and be okay with it is heartbreaking."
"It couldn’t be further from the truth.”
If you want friendly, confidential advice about drugs and alcohol, you can call American Addiction Centers on (313) 209-9137 24/7, or contact them through their website.
This Is Me: A Reckoning, will be released on May 19.
Topics: Hollywood, Mental Health
Kiesha Dosanjh