Hayden Panettiere's death has 'no signs of foul play' police say after Hollywood star died suddenly aged 36 in South Carolina

Hollywood actress Hayden Panettiere, best known for her roles in Heroes and Nashville, has died aged 36 - with police saying there were 'no signs of foul play'.

Detectives confirmed to the Daily Mail that they responded yesterday afternoon to a 911 call from an 'acquaintance' of Panettiere, describing her as 'unresponsive'.

Officers and paramedics headed to the apartment block in Greenville, South Carolina, where they tried to save Panettiere's life, but she was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police and the local coroner's office are probing the death, but said the 'preliminary investigation has not indicated any signs of foul play or suspicious circumstances'.

The star and her on-off real estate agent boyfriend Brian Hickerson were said to have flown from Los Angeles to South Carolina, where he is from, one day before she died.

The 36-year-old star began acting as a child, appearing in soap operas then gaining wider recognition for her role in the 2000 sports drama Remember The Titans with Denzel Washington, and as the voice of Dot in Pixar's 1998 film A Bug's Life.

Panettiere later found fame playing cheerleader Claire Bennet in the superhero drama Heroes before starring as country singer Juliette Barnes for six seasons on Nashville.

She earned two Golden Globe nominations for best supporting actress on the show, while her singing produced 11 entries on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs charts.

Panettiere's film credits include 2006's Bring It On: All Or Nothing, comedy-drama film Raising Helen, and appearances in Scream 4 and Scream VI as Kirby Reed.

Hayden Panettiere and her on-off boyfriend Brian Hickerson in Los Angeles in December 2018

Panettiere died at Judson Mill Lofts (pictured), an apartment block in Greenville, South Carolina

Panettiere is remembered for her role as Claire Bennet on the hit NBC series Heroes

She played Juliette Barnes on the ABC show Nashville, releasing a number of her own songs

Today, a spokesman for City of Greenville Police told the Daily Mail: 'On August 16, 2026, at approximately 1.51pm, officers from the Greenville Police Department, accompanied by EMS personnel, responded to a report of an unresponsive female at Judson Mill Lofts, located at 701 Easley Bridge Road.

'Upon arrival, medical assistance was administered; however, the individual, later identified as Hayden Panettiere, was pronounced deceased at the scene.

'The case is under investigation by the Greenville Police Department in conjunction with the Greenville County Coroner's Office.

'The preliminary investigation has not indicated any signs of foul play or suspicious circumstances. An acquaintance of Ms Panettiere placed the 911 call. At this time, no further details are available for release.'

Earlier, a representative for Panettiere confirmed the death, saying her family would remember her as an 'incredible light' who brought 'immeasurable love and joy to all who knew her'.

A statement from her father Skip read: 'It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden.

'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.'

Her father also asked that her family be given privacy as they 'take time to process this unimaginable loss'.

No cause of death has been announced.

Scream co-star Melissa Barrera paid tribute to the actress in an Instagram story, writing, 'Rest in peace sweet Hayden,' alongside a broken heart emoji.

Panettiere leaves behind an 11-year-old daughter Kaya, whom she had with Wladimir Klitschko

Panettiere is pictured with her daughter, after telling how she almost died during childbirth

Commenting under Panettiere's latest social media post after news of her death broke, actress Selma Blair said: 'I love you. Don't be gone. Don't be gone. Please. Please.'

Singer JoJo wrote on her Instagram stories: 'this is such devastating news. I am so sorry to hear of her passing. Oh My God', and Rosie O'Donnell shared a picture of Panettiere with the caption: 'Oh my god – heartbroken.'

Following her rapid rise to fame, the pressure of the industry began to weigh on Panettiere – with the actress previously revealing that she had struggled with addiction throughout her 20s.

In a memoir published earlier this year, Panettiere opened up about her struggles with mental health, the loss of her younger brother, Jansen, and her decision to give full custody of her daughter Kaya to her former partner, Ukrainian boxer Wladimir Klitschko, in 2018.

'The idea that anyone would think that I would just give away my child and be okay with it is heartbreaking and couldn't be further from the truth,' she told podcaster Jay Shetty after the release of her memoir in May.

Panettiere said her daughter had lived with her father full-time from a young age amid the actress's struggles with addiction and mental health.

She said: 'I was struggling with mental health and anxiety and the postpartum and having to act my way through it and just feeling like I completely lost myself.'

Panettiere also spoke about giving up custody of her daughter while struggling with addiction in one of her final interviews before her death.

In an interview with parenting outlet Mome for its July cover, she discussed the life-threatening birth of her daughter Kaya, 11, and the eventual decision to give up custody to her ex-fiance Klitschko, 50.

Panettiere started out as a child star, with her first acting gig at just 11 months old

Panettiere's younger brother Jansen Panettiere died in 2023. They are seen together in 2011

While battling substance addiction issues, in 2018 the actress made the decision to sign over custody of her daughter to Klitschko, who was not living in the same country as Panettiere at the time.

She said: 'It wasn't a decision I made lightly, nor was it a decision I even wanted to make.

'I was going through a really challenging time in my life… I knew I needed to be able to put her first so that I could get the help I needed and be the mum she needed me to be.'

After giving birth to her daughter in 2014, Panettiere recalled haemorrhaging before she underwent seven blood transfusions and surgery to repair vessels that had begun to fail.

She said: 'I closed my eyes and just prayed for my daughter to be OK. I truly was ready to go if it was my time. Kaya being safe and healthy was all that mattered.'

However, days later she recalled feeling 'nothing' when looking at her daughter and developed postnatal depression. The actress then turned to drinking.

She said: 'I turned to wine, which ultimately ended up leading to an alcohol dependency. It was how I would get through each day.

Although she underwent treatment, Panettiere felt the 'root cause' of her drinking, the depression, was not addressed.

'I wish more people had known what it was at the time. Maybe I wouldn't have waited so long to get help,' she said.

Six years on from giving up custody, Panettiere spoke about her current relationship with her daughter.

Hayden Panettiere attends the world premiere of 'Scream VI' in New York in March 2023

Panettiere in New York in May, promoting her new book 'This Is Me: A Reckoning'

She said: 'I love my daughter, and I'm so proud of the young woman she is becoming. I talk to her all the time, and I feel so connected to her. She's like a mini-me.'

The actress went on to say she had 'been able to put her first no matter how I've felt or what I've experienced' and that she hoped that one day Kaya would 'understand my story and why I wasn't able to be with her all the time'.

She then called herself 'resilient' and a 'work in progress', but that she was 'doing the work…and doing my best'.

In May, Panettiere released her memoir titled This Is Me: A Reckoning, in which she also detailed being separated from her only child.

'Not being under the same roof with her every day has been the most gut-wrenching experience of my life, and it's hard to describe the layers of emotion – including sadness, resentment, and anger – I've felt because of it,' she wrote.

'I grieve that I'm not the mother I thought I'd be and definitely not the mother I want to be (trust me, no one should ever have to raise a child on FaceTime), and although I miss Kaya so much my heart aches, I know how blessed I am to be her mom.

'She is the greatest gift of my life, with all the best parts of her father and me.'

Actors' union Sag-Aftra, of which the actress had been a member since 1994, said in a post on X: 'We mourn the sudden passing of Hayden Panettiere. 

'A child actor, Hayden's long career in TV and film included memorable roles in Heroes, Nashville and more. Our hearts are with her daughter, family, friends & fans.'