What Hayden Panettiere Said About Her Relationship With Daughter Kaya
Hayden Panettiere Shared Heartbreaking Final Instagram Post Weeks Before Death at 36
Hayden Panettiere had high hopes for her daughter Kaya’s future.
Just months before the Heroes alum’s tragic death at age 36, she detailed what she wanted for her and ex Wladimir Klitschko’s daughter in the future.
“I started getting calls from my 11-year-old being interested in the industry so that’s more of a nail bitter,” Panettiere shared in an interview with E! News in May. “I always want to support whatever she wants to do but I am trying to guide her toward, ‘Let’s not rush into anything.’”
Indeed, while Panettiere started her career as an actor at just 11 months old, she had a different trajectory in mind for her daughter.
“‘Why don’t you try a few things out and have a college experience,’” Panettiere recalled telling her. “She still has the ability to fly under the radar and once you give that up you don’t get it back. Once you’re out there and you’re famous and known, there is no getting your privacy back.”
Meanwhile, Panettiere noted how her memoir This Is Me: A Reckoning could provide an important guide for her daughter in the future when it comes to exploring her struggles with postpartum depression.
“She keeps asking about the book—she wants to read it,” the Bring It On: All of Nothing alum mused. “My fear is that I don’t ever want her to feel like the postpartum depression aspect was her fault in any way. I don’t know what the emotions are going to be around that but I want her to take away that it’s OK to be imperfect and flawed and you’ll actually realize that you’re not alone in any of your struggles and you don’t have to stay quiet and be sick like I was.”
In fact, Panettiere’s daughter served as the only motivation while battling an especially intense bout of postpartum depression, which she explored in her memoir.
Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images
“I have a beautiful, healthy little girl,” Panettiere detailed. “I am in a beautiful place. I have a blessed life and all I want is to be happy.”
Elsewhere in her book, Panettiere—whose father Skip Panetteire confirmed was found dead on Aug. 16—shared that she felt her life was completed by her daughter’s birth in 2014. When going through a near-fatal c-section, the Nashville alum noted her then-newborn got her through it.
“I knew I was knocking on death’s doorstep,” Panettiere said, “and I had just the most motherly moment where I said, ‘God please just let me hear my daughter cry. I just want to know she’s OK. If it’s my time to go, I’m OK with that. I’m ready.’ I wasn’t afraid at all.”
For a deeper look at Panettiere’s bond with her daughter, keep reading…
Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic
Hayden Panettiere announced during the 2014 Emmy Awards that she and then-fiancé Wladimir Klitschko were expecting their first baby together.
"It's a little girl," the Nashville star told E! on the red carpet. "I can't wait for her to come out, this little one."
The pair, who split in 2018, welcomed Kaya Klitschko on Dec. 9, 2014.
Hayden Panettiere/X
Fun in the Sun
Panettiere and Klitschko were all smiles while spending a day by the pool with their daughter Kaya. She wrote alongside the photo in July 2017, "Blessed to be with my beautiful family."
Hayden Panettiere/X
Daddy's Little Girl
Panettiere struggled with severe postpartum depression after welcoming Kaya. Though, her candor helped bring attention to maternal mental health. Ultimately, she gave Klitschko full custody in 2018 and was grateful to see the strong support system her daughter had.
"It was grief in the beginning," she recalled on a May 2026 episode of the On Purpose with Jay Shetty podcast. "But because of the relationship that I do have with her and how things ultimately played out, I'm incredibly grateful to her. She has an incredible father, an incredible family."
Although the Heroes alum lived separately from Kaya, the mother-daughter duo still shared a strong bond.
"It's not what I hoped motherhood was going to be or what it would look like," she admitted. "But I'm so lucky that it turned out the way it did and that she is safe and a wonderful, well-rounded person."
Hayden Panettiere/X
Sweet Embrace
Panettiere shared a sweet moment with Kaya while holding her close. As she wrote alongside a March 2017 photo of them hugging, "Best feeling in the world.”
Hayden Panettiere/Twitter
Being the Best Mom She Can Be
While Kaya lived with Klitschko in Europe full-time, she and the Scream 4 actress spent as much time as possible together.
"I have an incredible relationship with her," she explained on Jay Shetty's podcast. "I go travel as much as I can. I see her. I do spend a lot of time on FaceTime with her, but we talk about really deep things."
Hayden Panettiere/X
Trying Her Best for Kaya
As Panettiere navigated mental health struggles and addiction, she always tried to be a better mom, friend and person.
"I've always strived to be a positive person," she wrote in her 2026 memoir This Is Me: A Reckoning, "but I grieve all the hours I lose to addiction, my broken relationships, and my loved ones who are no longer here."
Nonetheless, the actress had continued to maintain a positive outlook on her future.
"I'm far from perfect," she added, "but my life quakes and moments of struggle are little miracles that have helped me grow."
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