Hayden Panettiere, the actress who rose to fame as indestructible cheerleader Claire Bennet on NBC’s “Heroes” before playing country singer Juliette Barnes on “Nashville,” has died at 36. Her father confirmed her death to ABC News on Sunday, as reported by The New York Post.
“It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden,” Skip Panettiere said in a statement. No cause of death or information about the circumstances surrounding her death was immediately provided.
Her death came three months after the publication of her candid memoir, “This Is Me: A Reckoning.”
In the book, the former child star discussed her battles with alcohol and opioid addiction, postpartum depression, domestic abuse, and the pressures of growing up in Hollywood.
The Palisades, NY, native began working as a baby and appeared in commercials when she was just 11 months old.
She later secured roles on the soap operas “One Life to Live” and “Guiding Light,” and she was homeschooled after middle school to balance her education with her acting schedule.
At 9 years old, Panettiere became one of the youngest actors nominated for a Grammy Award after voicing Princess Dot in the 1998 movie “A Bug’s Life.”
She appeared in “Remember the Titans” at 10 years old before becoming widely known as Claire Bennet when “Heroes” premiered in 2006.
Her other movie credits included Disney’s “Ice Princess,” “Racing Stripes,” “Bring It On: All or Nothing,” and “I Love You, Beth Cooper.”
Her portrayal of troubled country star Juliette Barnes on “Nashville” earned her two Golden Globe nominations for best supporting actress in 2013 and 2014, respectively.
As her career continued, Panettiere was privately struggling with addiction.
She said her drinking began spiraling after she moved to Tennessee to film “Nashville” in 2012 and became worse following the 2014 birth of her daughter, Kaya, when she also experienced postpartum depression.
Kaya lives with her father, former pro boxer Wladimir Klitschko, in his native Ukraine after Panettiere relinquished custody during her struggles with addiction and postpartum depression.
Panettiere also said an old neck injury led her to use prescription opioids before her tolerance developed into a dependency.
She first entered rehab in 2015 and said she felt as though she was “drowning.” Panettiere later returned to drinking, which she described as a crutch for handling anxiety and life in the public eye.
By the time she turned 30, the abuse had taken a severe physical toll. “My face was swollen. I had jaundice. My eyes were yellow. I had to go to a liver specialist,” Panettiere told Women’s Health.
“I was holding on to weight that wasn’t normally there. My hair was thin and coming out in clumps.” In her memoir, the mom of one revealed that a doctor had warned she could be dead within five years if she continued drinking.
Panettiere eventually entered treatment and experienced severe withdrawal symptoms that included shaking, insomnia, headaches, and an episode of auditory hallucinations.
After treatment, she said sobriety gave her a new sense of calm, happiness and clarity.
She had also spoken publicly about domestic abuse by her former boyfriend Brian Hickerson.
Hickerson pleaded no contest in 2021 to two felony counts of injuring a spouse or girlfriend and received 45 days in county jail and four years of formal probation.
Panettiere experienced another devastating loss in February 2023 when her younger brother, Jansen, suddenly died at 28 from an undiagnosed heart condition.
“When I lost him, I felt like I lost half of my soul,” she told People in 2024.
She said her previous struggle with agoraphobia returned after his death and made it difficult for her to leave home.
“When you lose somebody that you saw in all of the important moments in your life, standing right next to you, it just rocks your world,” she said on “Today” in September 2024.
Despite those struggles, Panettiere resumed acting after a roughly four-year hiatus and reprised her role as Kirby Reed in 2023’s “Scream VI.”
She followed that return with the 2024 thriller “Amber Alert,” 2025’s “A Breed Apart,” and “Sleepwalker,” which was released in January 2026.
One month before her death, Panettiere canceled an appearance at Creep I.E. Con as her representative said she was dealing with “a private family matter concerning the health of an elderly relative.”
On July 27, she shared a playful black-and-white Instagram photo with photographer Randall Slavin, captioning it, “Good times and good friends @randallslavin ✨.”
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Panettiere is survived by her father, Alan Lee “Skip” Panettiere, her estranged mother, Lesley Vogel, and her 11-year-old daughter Kaya Evdokia Klitschko.
