Taylor Swift was left “deeply saddened” by the sudden death of Hayden Panettiere, a former Nashville neighbor with whom she shared a warm, years-long rapport.
“Taylor and Hayden were always friendly with each other and had a really nice rapport,” a source said. “They lived in the same apartment complex in Nashville for a while and would cross paths from time to time.” The insider added that Swift, 36, was “obviously really shocked when she heard about Hayden’s passing” and “was deeply saddened to hear what happened.”
The pair both lived at The Adelicia in Nashville during a period when Panettiere was in Tennessee filming the ABC series “Nashville.” Swift purchased a penthouse in the building in 2009, while Panettiere, 36, moved into the complex in 2012 after relocating to the city for the show. Their neighborly connection once led to a memorable favor, which Panettiere recalled during a 2012 appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” After finding herself without a guitar before a songwriting session with songwriter Jessi Alexander.
“I freaked out because I didn’t have my guitar — I’d left it in my trailer,” Panettiere said on the late-night show. “I literally texted every one of those girls: ‘Does anybody have a guitar?’ Finally, Taylor Swift came through for me. Two of her security guards brought down this guitar…. I had to fill out a form. It was very intense.”
While Swift was promoting her “Red” album in 2012, she was asked during an interview with the Woody & Jim Show if she watches “Nashville.”
“Well, Hayden is a friend of mine and she’s my neighbor actually,” Swift said during the interview. “I remember the first time I ever met her, she came up and she was like, ‘I just need you to know, my character is not based on you.’ It was so hilarious.”
The insider continued, “Hayden always spoke very highly of Taylor and was supportive of her, and there was always a mutual respect between them.” The pop superstar and the Golden Globe nominee “saw each other at different events over the years and always got along really well,” the source said. The two crossed paths outside their Nashville building, including at the Teen Choice Awards on July 22, 2012, where they were photographed together.
Panettiere died Sunday in Greenville, South Carolina, her family confirmed. She was 36. Authorities responded to a South Carolina Airbnb on Sunday for an “unresponsive” female in “cardiac arrest” after a suspected “overdose.” According to the incident report obtained by Page Six, “life-saving measures were administered,” but they were “unsuccessful.” A cause of death has not been officially determined. The coroner is awaiting toxicology results to determine cause and manner of death.
“It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden,” her father, Skip Panettiere, said in a statement announcing her death. “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 asked for privacy as the family processes the “unimaginable loss.” Panettiere is survived by her 11-year-old daughter, Kaya, and her parents.
In the viral moment that defined their public friendship, Panettiere’s 2012 “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” Appearance brought their Nashville neighbor dynamic into the spotlight. She told the story of texting around her building for a guitar and having Swift’s security team deliver one with paperwork to sign, a moment that captured the oddities of celebrity life in a luxury high-rise. Swift, meanwhile, had confirmed their friendly status that same year in her radio interview, revealing Panettiere’s preemptive assurance that her “Nashville” character was not based on the pop star.
Wladimir Klitschko, Panettiere’s former partner and father of her daughter, also spoke out following her death. “The announcement of Hayden’s tragic death saddens me deeply,” he wrote. “She left this world far too soon. Hayden was, although no longer my partner, an important part of my life and the mother of our daughter, Kaya,” He added, “She built an incredible career through immense talent, while also facing the darker sides of a very demanding industry. Nothing will erase the times we shared or the place she had in our lives.”
Panettiere had been open in recent years about her struggles with addiction, postpartum depression, and the pressures of growing up in the public eye. In her memoir “This Is Me: A Reckoning,” released in May, she reflected on her childhood fame, motherhood, her mental health, and the 2023 death of her younger brother, Jansen Panettiere, at age 28.