Hayden Panettiere, 36, died Sunday, her father Skip confirmed in a statement to ABC News.
The actress passed away on Sunday, August 16, just one day after departing Los Angeles on a plane with Brian Hickerson, reports said. She would have turned 37 the following Friday. No cause of death has been released, and her publicist did not immediately respond to requests for comment from The Associated Press.
“It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden,” her father said in the family’s statement. “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.”
Skip asked for privacy “as our family takes time to process this unimaginable loss.” The statement offered no further details about the circumstances surrounding her death.
Panettiere began her career as a child actor in commercials and soap operas, landing the role of Sarah Roberts on “One Life to Live” at age 4. Her breakthrough came in 2006 when she was cast as Claire Bennet, a cheerleader with regenerative healing powers, on NBC’s “Heroes.” The show’s central mystery revolved around the mantra “Save the cheerleader, save the world.”
“I think ‘Heroes’ is really hot because it’s just a really great combination of everything that people love — they love reality, they love sci-fi and things like X-Men where they get to dream of something bigger,” Panettiere said in 2008. “And at the core of it are these human stories that people can relate to, very rugged. And it’s just grabbed everyone in every age group.”
The role earned her three Teen Choice Awards and made her a household name. She later transitioned to playing Juliette Barnes, a brash country upstart, on ABC’s “Nashville” opposite Connie Britton. Panettiere did her own singing on the show, which spawned U.S. Tours and earned her two Golden Globe nominations for supporting actress. Eleven songs she recorded for “Nashville” appeared on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs charts.
Panettiere was candid about her struggles with alcohol and drug use over the years. She got sober in 2020 after spending time at a rehab facility. In her memoir “This Is Me: A Reckoning,” published in May 2026, she detailed her battle with addiction.
“A doctor told me that if I didn’t stop drinking, I’d be dead within five years,” she recalled in the book.
The actress spoke openly about the pain of losing her younger brother, Jansen Panettiere, who died of a heart condition in 2023 at age 28. In an interview with E! News two months before her own death, she discussed the guilt she carried as an older sibling.
“This grief just keeps shifting,” she said in May 2026. “Especially as the older sister, you get tortured by guilt that you didn’t do enough. And the thing that took him is something I should have understood more than anyone.”
She continued, “I think about him all the time. I didn’t think I was going to live without him, but I’m grateful for the time I had with him.”
Panettiere also described seeing “signs” of her brother but trying to stay grounded. “I don’t want to go too far down that road because your brain plays tricks on you and then everything’s a sign and you’re just making things up to make yourself feel better,” she explained. She treasured his artwork, noting, “He was an incredible artist and my favorite thing is his art. I feel like he’s still alive in those paintings, like he put pieces of himself into his art so that part of him is immortal.”
In the viral moment that defined her off-screen struggles, Panettiere granted full custody of her daughter Kaya, now 11, to ex-partner Wladimir Klitschko in 2018 as she sought treatment for substance abuse. Klitschko and Kaya moved to Ukraine that same year.
“Not being under the same roof with her every day has been the most gut-wrenching experience of my life,” Panettiere wrote of Kaya in her memoir. She had previously said in May 2026 that she and her father Skip “have a great relationship,” though she was estranged from her mother Lesley Vogel.
Panettiere’s death prompted an outpouring of grief from friends and fans on her Instagram account, with comments including “I love you. Don’t go. Don’t go. Please” and “My God, heartbreaking!” Her final Instagram post before her death showed her with friends.
She is survived by her daughter Kaya, her father Skip, and the millions of viewers who grew up watching her evolve from child star to scream queen to country music diva.
Her memoir “This Is Me: A Reckoning” remains on shelves nationwide.