American actress Hayden Panettiere, best known for her roles in the television series Heroes and Nashville, has died at the age of 36.
Panettiere died on Sunday, Aug. 16, 2026, at the age of 36, with details surrounding her death still unclear. Authorities are investigating the circumstances, while no official cause of death has been disclosed. Her family has requested privacy as they grieve the loss of the actress.
Born on Aug. 21, 1989, in Palisades, New York, Panettiere began working in entertainment as a child. She appeared in commercials before taking on television roles and later established herself as a film and television actress.
The Television Academy says she began appearing in commercials at 11 months old and had appeared in more than 50 commercials as a child.
Her early film credits included the 2000 sports drama Remember the Titans, in which she played Sheryl Yoast alongside Denzel Washington.
She also voiced characters in animated productions including Pixar’s A Bug’s Life and appeared in films such as Ice Princess and Racing Stripes.
Panettiere rose to international prominence in 2006 when she was cast as Claire Bennet, a cheerleader with regenerative abilities, in NBC’s superhero drama Heroes.
The role made her one of the most recognizable young actresses on television and earned her several Teen Choice Awards.
She went on to play Juliette Barnes, an ambitious country music star, in the musical drama Nashville, which ran from 2012 to 2018.
Her performance earned her two Golden Globe nominations, while her work on the series also showcased her singing abilities.
Panettiere also became known to a new generation of viewers through the Scream franchise. She played Kirby Reed in Scream 4 and reprised the character in Scream VI. Her other work included lending her voice to the video game Until Dawn.
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In 2026, Panettiere returned to the screen in the psychological thriller Sleepwalker, while also taking on producing responsibilities. Her official biography described the project as part of a new stage in her career in which she was seeking to expand her work beyond acting.
Beyond her career, Panettiere was candid about the personal difficulties she experienced after becoming famous at a young age.
She publicly discussed depression, addiction and postpartum depression following the birth of her daughter, Kaya, in 2014. She also spoke about the challenges of motherhood and the impact of years spent in the public eye.
Those experiences formed a major part of her memoir, This Is Me: A Reckoning, published in May 2026. In the book, Panettiere reflected on childhood fame, motherhood, addiction, mental health and the difficulties of navigating adulthood under intense public scrutiny. The memoir became a New York Times and USA Today bestseller.
Panettiere also endured the death of her younger brother, actor Jansen Panettiere, who died in February 2023 at the age of 28.
In subsequent interviews and in her memoir, she discussed the profound grief she experienced following his death and the effect it had on her life.
She shared daughter Kaya with former fiancé, Ukrainian heavyweight boxing champion Wladimir Klitschko. Kaya lives with her father, according to reports, while Panettiere continued to speak publicly about her relationship with her daughter and her experiences as a mother.
Panettiere’s death comes only months after she had begun a new chapter in her career and publicly reflected on her life through her memoir.
She had made a public appearance in May surrounding the book’s release and continued discussing her experiences and future ambitions.
Her family has appealed for privacy as investigations into her death continue. No official cause of death has been announced.
Panettiere leaves behind a body of work spanning more than three decades, from child acting roles to some of the most recognizable television dramas of the 2000s and 2010s.
Her performances as Claire Bennet and Juliette Barnes, alongside her work in film, music and video games, established her as a versatile performer whose career began almost as soon as she could walk.
ABC News
