New details emerge from the day Hayden Panettiere died in South Carolina

The father of Hayden Panettiere’s child is in “profound shock and grief” after death of the 36-year-old actress.

Hayden Panettiere’s boyfriend and his brother called 911 to say the actress was unresponsive at a South Carolina apartment complex where medics would later declare her dead, according to a newly released police report.

Panettiere, known for playing an indestructible cheerleader in the series Heroes and a country music sensation in the show Nashville, was found in cardiac arrest at the residence where she was staying temporarily in Greenville on Sunday afternoon, a coroner’s office said. No cause of death has been released.

A Greenville police officer who responded to the scene interviewed brothers Brian and Zach Hickerson, who said they called 911, according to a police report released Tuesday.

“I spoke with Zach Hickerson first, he advised this was his brother’s girlfriend,” the officer wrote in the report.

Brian Hickerson showed the officer a bag of Panettiere’s medications, the report said. Many details of the police report are redacted, including a list of Panettiere’s medications.

CNN has reached out to Brian and Zach Hickerson for comment.

Panetteire’s shocking death sent waves of grief from Hollywood to Ukraine, where the father of their child mourned the beloved actress and activist who battled a host of struggles.

“Our family is going through a time of profound shock and grief,” Wladimir Klitschko, her ex-partner and a former world heavyweight boxing champion from Ukraine, posted Tuesday on X. “She built an incredible career through immense talent, while also facing the darker sides of a very demanding industry.”

Panettiere soared to stardom in the early 2000s before stepping back from the public spotlight as she battled addiction and mental health challenges and recently released a memoir describing her struggles.

Panettiere, a California resident, was found unresponsive inside the South Carolina residence “where she had been temporarily staying”, the coroner’s office said. The address is at an apartment complex, local police said.

After medics tried to resuscitate her, Panettiere was pronounced dead at the scene. An autopsy performed Monday revealed no signs of trauma that would have contributed to her death, the coroner’s office said. But the official cause and manner of death are pending the results of additional testing.

Micah Lee, who lives at the complex where Panettiere died, said his cats started “going crazy” Sunday. He poked his head out to see a lot of people in the hallway, but quickly went back into his apartment.

“I heard through the door that a person had collapsed,” Lee told CNN.

Lee received an email from the property manager asking residents not to speak to the media.

“Residents and community management are not in a position to provide official information or comment on the circumstances surrounding this matter,” according to the email Lee shared with CNN. “All media inquiries should be directed to the appropriate law enforcement authorities.”

Another family tragedy

“It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden,” her father, Skip Panettiere, said in a release shared by her representative. “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.”

Panettiere is also survived by an 11-year-old daughter Kaya, whom she shared with Klitschko, who had custody.

The actors’ union SAG-AFTRA mourned the “sudden passing” of Panettiere, who had been a member since 1994, the union said in a release. “A child actor, Hayden’s long career in TV & film included memorable roles in Heroes, Nashville & more. Our hearts are with her daughter, family, friends & fans.”

A remarkable, 35-year career

She voiced Princess Dot in the 1998 movie A Bug’s Life, and became one of the youngest people ever nominated for a Grammy Award for A Bug’s Life: Read-Along.

She played Lizzie Spaulding on the CBS soap opera Guiding Light from 1996 to 2000, portraying a girl with leukemia. She also portrayed a coach’s football-obsessed daughter in 2000’s Remember the Titans.

By the time Panettiere was 10, “she knew her lines and everyone else’s,” Lenz wrote. “Her intelligence was astonishing. She understood scenes and nuance and human struggle like no child I’d ever seen on camera.”

Panettiere’s breakout role came when she was a teenager, playing the self-healing cheerleader Claire Bennet in the NBC television series Heroes. The show ran from 2006 to 2010.

In 2011, Panettiere appeared in Scream 4 as Kirby Reed and returned to the horror franchise years later in the sixth instalment. She also had notable roles in the films Bring It On: All or Nothing, a sequel in the anthology series of competitive cheerleading, and I Love You, Beth Cooper.

“I have no words for this sad song. Just heartbreak,” the post read. “I love you girl. Sleep easy now.”

After widespread acclaim during her teens and 20s, Panettiere spoke openly about her struggles with addiction. She released a candid memoir earlier this year titled This Is Me: A Reckoning, reflecting on her life growing up from a child star to confronting postpartum depression, addiction, recovery and domestic abuse.

At one point, she was hospitalized with jaundice, and doctors told her that her liver was “going to give out,” she told the magazine.

In 2022, she opened up in an episode of Red Table Talk about the “very upsetting” experience of relinquishing custody of her daughter to Klitschko. Panettiere had previously said she was struggling with substance misuse at the time of that decision in 2018 and the issue wasn’t up for “discussion.”

“It was the hardest thing I could do,” she recalled. “But the best thing for my daughter was to make sure she was OK, take care of myself and make sure I could be a good mom to her. And sometimes that means letting go.”

“There was nothing in my life that feels like losing my other half,” she told podcaster Jay Shetty in an interview this year. “We were so close, and being the older sibling – who it’s your job to protect them and keep them safe – and not being able to, heartbreaking doesn’t even begin to cover it.”

Beyond acting and singing, Panettiere had also been known for her advocacy, supporting mental health awareness, animal rights and environmental issues.

She was honoured by officials in Washington, DC, for her advocacy for DC voting rights and statehood, with the mayor proclaiming a “Hayden Panettiere Day” on September 16, 2011.

Panettiere could not “continue to sit on the sidelines” and watch people suffer in the country where she has friends and family, she told CNN in 2022. Klitschko’s brother, Vitali Klitschko, is the mayor of Kyiv.

In recent years, Panettiere returned to acting with films such as Amber Alert in 2024 and Sleepwalker in 2026. The resurgence of her career made her death even more shocking.

“I don’t understand how this is real. Everything seemed to be turning around,” Lenz wrote. “She was coming BACK to life, wasn’t she? It’s too young and there’s still so much more life. And her daughter…. Hayden, you are surround by love. I’m sorry for every moment I didn’t reach out or check in. This can’t be real.”