Tragic Details About Hayden Panettiere's Life
The following article contains references to substance misuse, depression, domestic violence, and eating disorders
Hayden Panettiere first rose to international acclaim with her performance as perky cheerleader Claire Bennet in aughts classic "Heroes." Then came her turn as former teen popster Juliette Barnes on "Nashville," a role that the star imbued with charm and sass. But beneath her effervescent public persona, Panettiere has led a tragic life.
We don't see much from Hayden Panettiere anymore, which is largely due to the actor's traumatic experiences in the showbiz industry. When it comes to Hollywood tragedies, Panettiere's seemingly endless succession of misfortunes evoke the heartbreaking arcs of the Tinseltown starlets of yesteryear.
But former troubled child star Panettiere is all grown up now. Having been in the industry since she was still in diapers, the actor has decided to semi-withdraw from public life to heal from her trauma. It's been a rocky road, but if one thing's for certain, Panettiere is a survivor. Here are the tragic details about Hayden Panettiere's life.
At school, Hayden Panettiere was bullied relentlessly
Hayden Panettiere got her showbiz start in classic soaps, famously being at the forefront of a number of dark storylines for "Guiding Light." On the surface, it may have seemed that Panettiere was living the dream as a TV star. But her creative work meant that she struggled to identify with her peers. "I would go back to school [after filming] and have such a hard time fitting in with the kids my own age," she told The Telegraph. "For several years school was absolute torture."
She echoed such sentiments in a 2008 interview with the Daily Mail, in which she revealed that she was mercilessly bullied at school. "High school was torture for me," she said. "I was pretty much bullied every day because I was an actor ... They used to say to me, 'You think you're so hot because you're an actor.' It was almost as though I wasn't allowed to be human. There were times when I felt absolutely ripped apart." However, she said that such adversity ultimately made her stronger and taught her how to stand her ground.
Hayden Panettiere struggled with child stardom
Acting professionally since she was a few months old, Hayden Panettiere knows a thing or two about the pitfalls of child stardom. Speaking to BBC Breakfast (via the Daily Mail) in 2013, she acknowledged that there was an expectation for her to descend into a downward spiral as a young girl propelled to child stardom. "Being a young female growing up in this industry is tough ... everyone sits there and waits for you to fall off your horse," she said.
Somewhat inevitably, experiencing fame at such a young age, including a key role in Disney's "Remember the Titans," made it all the more difficult for Panettiere when her stardom seemed to wane. When "Heroes" wrapped, for instance, she found the sudden dearth of job opportunities hurtful. "When you've been working since you were a kid, you have this feeling of invincibility," she explained to Cosmopolitan. "The thought of not being successful didn't occur to me. Then it hit me like a ton of bricks."
These days, she is learning to heal from the trauma that came with being a child actor. Namely, she decided to take a much-needed break from acting after appearing in "Nashville," a step that was necessary for her mental health. "I was four years old when I was on Guiding Light," she told People in 2024. "And I did a bunch of commercials before that. So taking some time off after 'Nashville' was important. I literally hadn't taken a break from the industry since I was like, eight months old."
From a young age, Hayden Panettiere suffered from body dysmorphia
The "perfect" women's body type has changed throughout history, and the 2000s were particularly notorious for fueling toxic body negativity in girls and young women. Having been catapulted to fame as a teenager in the aughts, Hayden Panettiere experienced the effects of toxic size zero culture first hand, which led to her suffering from negative body image.
When Panettiere was just 16, a paparazzo took a photo of her bending over in a store without her consent. The photos were plastered on magazines along with body-negative headlines claiming that the star had cellulite. Extremely distraught, she stopped wearing shorts for five years. Also that year, she was body-shamed following the publication of bikini photos. "I was so traumatized, I developed an immediate insecurity about it," she told The Telegraph. "I don't want to call myself a victim, but I stopped reading anything about myself ever again after that."
Speaking to Women's Health in 2012, she revealed that the traumatic experience led to her developing a distorted sense of self. "It gave me such body dysmorphia for so long," she explained. "But I remember reminding myself that beauty is an opinion, not a fact. And it has always made me feel better."
Hayden Panettiere's dad was charged with assaulting her mom
In 2008, Hayden Panettiere's father was arrested after reportedly violently assaulting her mother. According to Sgt. Scott Wolf, Alan Panettiere felt that his wife, Lesley Panettiere, had disrespected him while the couple was at a party in the early hours of the morning. "There was a domestic argument between the mother and father," Wolf told People. "He got upset and struck the mother in the face one or two times on the left cheek, which caused some bruising. From what I'm told, he hit her with a closed fist." After being charged with misdemeanor battery, Alan pleaded no contest but was spared jail. He was sentenced to two years' probation for the assault, and he was made to undergo domestic violence counseling.
Opening up about the incident to Seventeen (via Us Weekly) the following year, Hayden said that she was hurt by claims that her father was a violent abuser. "It put my dad in this light that is so not him," she said. "You know, your mind goes to: 'He abuses, he beats his wife.' For my dad to have that reputation now — which is so not who he is — kills me."
When her parents divorced, Hayden Panettiere was stuck in the middle
At 18, Hayden Panettiere was at the height of her success thanks to her role in "Heroes." But what should have been a happy time in the actor's life was blighted by her parents entering a bitter, eight-year divorce saga. As a successful star, she found herself wedged between her parents — and having to foot the bill when her mom and dad suffered the financial ramifications of their divorce.
When her mom, Lesley Panettiere, was reportedly left penniless and homeless following the divorce, Hayden allowed her to move in with her rent-free. Similarly, she dished out $100,000 to her father, Alan Panettiere, since he also struggled in the aftermath of the separation. When the divorce was finalized in 2016, Alan was ordered to pay back all the money he owed his daughter.
Reflecting on this difficult period in an interview with The New York Times, Hayden explained that her relationship with her parents had improved since the loss of her brother, Jansen. "Of course, kids are always caught in the middle," she said. "But my relationship with my parents now is good and even more special to me, because we lost my brother."
The star struggled with substance misuse
When she was just 15-years-old, Hayden Panettiere was put on so-called pep pills to enable her to keep up with the demands of child stardom. "They were to make me peppy during interviews," she told People in 2024. "I had no idea that this was not an appropriate thing, or what door that would open for me when it came to my addiction."
By her early 20s, her substance misuse worsened, and she began self-medicating with alcohol. As she explained to Women's Health in 2023, alcohol was her way of taking back control in an industry that left her feeling helpless. However, she quickly discovered that the feeling of relief was merely fleeting. Soon, she began taking opiates to deal with chronic neck pain, but she rapidly developed a tolerance.
After taking a break from "Nashville" in 2015 to go to rehab, Panettiere suffered another relapse in 2021. Her disease became so severe that she suffered from liver damage, yellow eyes, and would experience shaking during withdrawal periods. Following rehab and trauma therapy, she was able to start her recovery process. "I did a lot of work on myself," she told Women's Health. "After eight months of intensive therapy, I felt like I had this blank canvas to work with." Panettiere has been sober since.
When she became a mom, Hayden Panettiere lost friends
In 2014, Hayden Panettiere and Ukrainian boxer Wladimir Klitschko announced that they were expecting their first child together. Their daughter, Kaya, was born that December. At the time, Panettiere told Hello! that she was adjusting to some of the physical changes to her body that came with pregnancy. But as Panettiere soon found out, her body wasn't the only thing that would change.
Seeing as Panettiere was just 25 when she became a mom, she was met with antipathy from many of her peers. Accordingly, becoming a mother meant that the star was left with few friends. "I went through a pregnancy, and I found out who my true friends were — the ones that were going to stick around and support me," she told Parade (via Self). "I'll just say the outcome was slim pickings."
But the negative experience was also a learning curve, enabling the actor to realize who her true friends are. "Now, I'm the mother of a 2-year-old, I've found my pack of solid, loyal, lifelong friends here and am settled into a beautiful routine," she said.
She suffered from postpartum depression
Following the birth of her daughter, Hayden Panettiere was diagnosed with postpartum depression in 2015. Subsequently, she took a break from "Nashville" and entered a treatment facility. "I never had the feeling that I wanted to harm my child, but I didn't want to spend any time with her," she told People in 2022. "There was just this gray color in my life."
Panettiere's road to recovery was anything but smooth sailing, with the star receiving questionable medical care during her time of crisis. Due to her history of substance misuse, doctors dismissed Panettiere's postpartum depression symptoms and accused her of lying. "Oh, it was horrible," she told "Good Morning America." "Once you're the identified patient as the alcoholic — and not as a girl, a woman going through postpartum depression — then they don't believe anything that comes out of your mouth ... It's heartbreaking. You want to break down and cry, which makes you look even worse."
Following her treatment, she returned to "Nashville" in 2016. Speaking to Yahoo! Life, she emphasized that she wanted to de-stigmatize postpartum depression and address misconceptions about the illness, particularly those that manifest through medical gaslighting. "If you think for one second that a mother wants to feel that way toward her child, you're outta your mind," she said. "It is one of the most debilitating, scary, guilty feelings that you can ever feel ... for anybody to say that it's false or created by us, you must have your head examined."
Hayden Panettiere lost custody of her daughter
In 2018, Hayden Panettiere and Wladimir Klitschko called it quits. As Panettiere explained to People in 2022, it was her spiraling substance misuse struggles that led to the dissolution of the pair's relationship. "He didn't want to be around me," she said. "I didn't want to be around me. But with the opiates and alcohol, I was doing anything to make me feel happy for a moment. Then I'd feel worse than I did before. I was in a cycle of self-destruction."
Klitschko was given custody of Kaya, who was sent to live with her father in his native Ukraine. During an appearance on "Red Table Talk" (via People), Panettiere said that she found the circumstances of relinquishing custody traumatic, as Klitschko reportedly hadn't discussed the decision with his ex. "Because of the way that it was done, it was very upsetting," she said. "I mean, it was the worst signing those papers, the most heartbreaking thing I've ever, ever had to do in my life."
Initially, she held onto hope that she would get her daughter back, if she recovered from her personal issues, but that never happened. Elsewhere in the interview, she spoke of the pain of Kaya asking if she could call other women "mommy," something which Klitschko found amusing. "He thought this was funny, and it was horrifying to me ... He didn't get it, as to me, who saw that's a trauma reaction. That's a cry for help," she said.
Hayden Panettiere is a domestic abuse survivor
Following her split with Wladimir Klitschko in 2018, Hayden Panettiere began a relationship with Brian Hickerson. By May 2019, Hickerson was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence. Sfter initially being ordered to stay away from his ex, the charges against Hickerson were dropped. and the couple rekindled their relationship.
Though there are plenty of toxic relationship habits that people think are healthy, loved ones swiftly expressed their concerns over the pair's reunion. "Brian's family is extremely concerned for his safety when he is with Hayden," a source told Us Weekly. "They are terrified that Brian will once again find himself accused of domestic violence. Hayden and Brian are very toxic for each other." Similarly, sources told Us Weekly that Klitschko didn't approve of Hickerson either, with the boxer alleging that he was controlling and abusive towards Panettiere.
In 2020, Hickerson was charged with felony assault, and the following year, he was sentenced to 45 days in jail. "After suffering for years as the victim of psychological, emotional and severe physical abuse, Hayden Panettiere has begun the process of taking back her life," her attorney said in a statement to People. Speaking to The New York Times in 2023, Panettiere revealed that she and Hickerson had rekindled their relationship on the condition that he would continue with his recovery.
Her brother died young
In 2023, Hayden Panettiere's brother, graffiti artist Jansen Panettiere, died at 28. After failing to attend a business meeting, Jansen was found unresponsive in his apartment. His family later revealed that he died as the result of an enlarged heart. "Jansen's heart could be seen in his eyes, and his charm in his brilliant, engaging smile; his soul in his masterful and revealing paintings, and the joy of life in his dry wit," the Panettiere family told ABC News.
Hayden was devastated by her brother's untimely death. Appearing on "Good Morning America," she became tearful when discussing the loss. "He's uh, right here with me ... Always," she said, gesturing to her heart.
In her interview with The New York Times, she revealed that Jansen left her a painting that he was working on before he died, and that his artwork may have held hidden messages from beyond the grave. "I always see a few secret messages that maybe he meant to put there, maybe he didn't," she said. "His art, that was the thing that made him happiest."
Hayden Panettiere felt exploited by Nashville writers
While the cast of "Nashville" has gone on to experience varying levels of success, Hayden Panettiere made the decision to take a break from acting after the series' end in 2018. This respite was necessary for the sake of Panettiere's mental health, since the "Nashville" writers arguably exploited the star's real-life trauma for storylines.
Namely, Panettiere began noticing that the arc of her character, Juliette Barnes, mirrored her own experiences to an alarming degree. "They wrote my character as having postpartum depression," she told Women's Health in 2023. "They wrote that she abandoned her child and went to a different country. And it was very difficult to go on-set and to act out these feelings about these things that I was truly going through in my real life."
Speaking to The Messenger (via TVLine) in 2024, she claimed that the writers eschewed creating new storylines, because they supposedly had a plethora of material at hand thanks to her own struggles. "They were just looking at my life and going, 'Oh, let's just take what she's going through and put our little spin on it.' And then, ta-da! It's done,'" she suggested.
However, since the show was her livelihood, Panettiere felt powerless to speak out against the apparent exploitation. "Even if something was too much for me, I would never admit to it," she told The New York Times. "It was always about making them happy."
If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, depression, or eating disorders, or may be the victim of domestic violence, contact the relevant resources below:
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The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
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The Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741, call the National Alliance on Mental Illness helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264), or visit the National Institute of Mental Health website.
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The National Eating Disorders Association website or contact NEDA's Live Helpline at 1-800-931-2237. You can also receive 24/7 Crisis Support via text (send NEDA to 741-741).
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The National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.