American actress Hayden Panettiere, known for her starring roles in the television series 'Heroes' and 'Nashville', died aged 36, according to an obituary statement transmitted by CBC News, the American partner of the BBC.
In the statement, her father, Skip Panettiere, described his daughter as "an extraordinary light and a force of nature who brought an incalculable amount of love and joy to everyone who knew her and to the millions of people who saw her on screen".
Panettiere began her acting career as a child. She was cast in the American drama "One Life to Live" when she was only four years old. She gained recognition when she lent her voice to the character of Dot, the tiny ant princess, in Pixar's animated film "A Bug's Life" in 1998, and was nominated for a Grammy for the film's companion album in the best children's music album category.
She achieved major fame playing Claire Bennet, a high school cheerleader with extraordinary powers, in the acclaimed NBC series 'Heroes', which premiered in 2006. She also appeared in the sports drama "Remember the Titans" in 2000 alongside Denzel Washington. Panettiere received two Golden Globe nominations in 2013 and 2014 in the best supporting actress in a television series, miniseries or television film category for her role as Juliette Barnes in the musical drama 'Nashville'.
According to IMDb, her most recent appearance was in the psychological thriller "Sleepwalker", released in the United States in January 2026, where she played an afflicted mother who suffers from sleepwalking episodes.
Her brother, actor Jansen Panettiere, died in 2023 aged 28 from complications related to dilated cardiomyopathy and aortic valve disease, according to a family statement released to American media that year.
Panettiere published her memoir titled "This Is Me: Loving the Life You're Given" in May, in which she wrote about the pressures of being a child star and her experiences with addiction and recovery. She also addressed her estrangement from her mother, who managed her professional career as a child and later criticised her daughter's book.
Following the birth of her daughter Kaya in 2014, Panettiere revealed that she underwent treatment for postpartum depression. In 2018, full custody of her daughter was awarded to her ex-partner, Ukrainian boxer Vladimir Klitschko. In an interview with podcast host Jay Shetty following the publication of her memoir, Panettiere said it was "painful" that people believed she had simply abandoned her daughter, emphasising that this was "far from the truth".
Scott Brian, television critic and presenter, said that Panettiere's death would be a "shock" for her admirers. He added that many would remember her for her role as Claire in the famous series 'Heroes', noting that she had a "natural and fluid presence" in the roles she played. "She had a very approachable style. I think she was able to make the audience empathise with her in every role she played; she made it look easy. And when it comes to acting, that is very difficult to achieve," he said.
Brian added that the flood of reactions to news of her death demonstrates that she enjoyed "a genuine relationship with many people". "It seemed that everyone knew her from one piece of work or another," he concluded.
