Nashville and Heroes star Hayden Panettiere dies at 36
Nashville and Heroes star Hayden Panettiere has sadly died aged 36.
A representative for the star has confirmed the news in a statement to PEOPLE, in which they paid tribute to the ‘force of nature’.
“It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden,” the statement read.
“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.”
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In a statement to ABC News, Panettiere’s father Skip asked for privacy as the ‘family takes time to process this unimaginable loss’.
No further details surrounding her death have been shared.
Panettiere got her first acting credit at just 11 months old appearing in a toy commercial and would later go on to carve a solid career as a child star.
In 1994, she joined the ABC soap opera One Life to Live before moving to CBS’ Guiding Light a couple of years later.
At the age of nine, she made her feature film debut after landing the role of narrator and Princess Dot in Pixar’s A Bug’s Life.
However, she shot to international fame after playing Claire Bennet, a high school cheerleader who finds herself gifted with healing powers, on the hit NBC series Heroes in 2006.
When Heroes ended in 2010, Panettiere headed back to the big screen for Scream 4 in 2011 and reprised the role for Scream 6 in 2023.
She also appeared in the hugely popular ABC musical drama Nashville, appearing across all six seasons and earning herself a handful of award nominations.
Earlier this year, Panettiere released her memoir This Is Me: A Reckoning, in which she wrote candidly about her struggles with postpartum depression, addiction and recovery.
Panettiere shared one daughter Kaya, now 11, with her ex partner Wladimir Klitschko.
She and the former pro boxer were engaged to be married when she gave birth in 2014.
However, they later parted ways and in 2014 Panettiere made the decision to give full custody to Klitschko.
Speaking on Jay Shetty’s On Purpose podcast just weeks ago, Panettiere said she had initially opposed the idea when Klitschko had suggested it.
“That was incredibly difficult. The fact that my child wasn’t going to be with me all day every day was just ... you can’t put words to it,” she said.
But she later changed her mind after deciding it would be the best decision for her young daughter.
Panettiere stayed in regular contact with her child before her death.
In 2023, Panettiere’s younger brother Jensen tragically passed away due to an undiagnosed heart condition, leaving his sister devastated.
Speaking about her grief in 2024, she told TODAY: "I think it's something that transforms over time.
"Maybe the five stages of grief is for people who have had a heartbreak or find out some bad news. Like, yes, there are five stages, but there's so much more in between.
“When you lose somebody that you saw in all the important moments in your life, standing right next to you, it just rocks your world.”
Claire Reid