Hayden Panettiere, who became a household name as a teenager for her role in Heroes and later starred in Nashville and multiple Scream films, has died at age 36.

Police in Greenville, South Carolina, said officers “responded to a report of an unresponsive female” at around 1:50 pm ET on Sunday (August 16). She was pronounced dead at the scene. A cause of death has not been revealed.

“An autopsy was completed today. At autopsy no signs of trauma were discovered that would have contributed to the death,” a Monday report from the Greenville County Coroner’s Office’s stated.

Her father, Skip, confirmed Panettiere’s death in a heartbreaking statement to ABC News. Panettiere’s co-stars including Connie Britton, Tim Allen, Viola Davis and Melissa Barrera have offered heartfelt tributes to the two-time Golden Globe nominee on social media.

Among her most memorable roles were Sheryl Yoast in the 2000 Denzel Washington-led film Remember the Titans, * high school cheerleader Claire Bennet on NBC’s sci-fi drama Heroes (2006-2010), and aspiring country singer Juliette Barnes on the hit TV series Nashville *(2012-2018).

Her New York Times bestselling memoir, This Is Me: A Reckoning, was published in May this year, in which she looked back at her childhood in Hollywood and her experiences with addiction, postpartum depression, abusive relationships, and the loss of custody of her daughter, Kaya, whom she shares with former heavyweight boxer Wladimir Klitschko.

Hayden Panettiere dead: Heroes and Nashville star dies aged 36

Hayden Panettiere, best known for her roles in Heroes, Nashville, and the Scream franchise, has died aged 36.

“It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden,” Panettiere’s father, Skip said in a statement to ABC News. “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.”

No cause of death was announced.

Scream co-stars honour Hayden Panettiere after her death

Hayden Panettiere’s Scream family has been among those mourning the actor, with Neve Campbell remembering her former co-star as “a true talent”.

Neve Campbell, who starred with Panettiere in Scream 4, told People: “I found Hayden to be really kind and funny and brought a magnetic energy to set. She was a true talent which shows in the decades she worked in such a short life. Her family and loved ones are in my prayers.”

Emma Roberts, who played Panettiere’s on-screen cousin Jill Roberts in Scream 4, shared a photograph of the pair and wrote: “Rest in peace my sweet friend. you are so loved and you will be forever missed.”

David Arquette, another Scream 4 co-star, wrote “I love you, Hayden” on Variety’s Instagram post announcing her death.

Melissa Barrera, who worked with Panettiere on Scream VI, posted on Instagram Stories: “Rest in peace sweet Hayden.” Panettiere had returned as Kirby Reed in the 2023 film, 12 years after first playing the character.

Scream writer Kevin Williamson also shared a photograph of Panettiere in character as Kirby on his Instagram Stories, adding three red heart emojis.

Nico Tortorella, who played Trevor Sheldon in Scream 4, also shared a personal tribute, writing: “We grew up together in so many ways, fought like siblings, loved like siblings, and somewhere along the way, you just became family.”

Disney fans remember beloved film after Hayden Panettiere dies a year on from co-star

Nashville: Hayden Panettiere's role as Juliette Barnes

Hayden Panettiere played country-pop singer Juliette Barnes on ABC drama Nashville from 2012 to 2018 alongside co-star Connie Britton.

Connie Britton says goodbye to Nashville co-star Hayden Panettiere

Connie Britton has shared a tribute to former Nashville co-star Hayden Panettiere, sharing photographs of the pair from their years on the ABC country music drama.

“This was Hayden. Bursting with brilliance, shining so bright,” Britton wrote on Instagram. “I have no words for this sad song. Just heartbreak. I love you girl. Sleep easy now.”

Britton played country superstar Rayna Jaymes in the series, with Panettiere as the fiercely ambitious young singer Juliette Barnes. Their characters began as rivals fighting for their place in Nashville’s country music scene, but their relationship gradually became one of the show’s most important friendships.

Panettiere and Britton starred together throughout the show’s run from 2012 to 2018.

Panettiere also wrote about the changing dynamic with Britton in her memoir, admitting she became “deeply uncomfortable” when her character’s growing popularity began to rival Britton’s. “My character wasn’t intended to be the show’s star – not even close,” she wrote. “That honour went to Connie, whose Rayna Jaymes was in the twilight of her career, facing a dramatic turning point thanks to yours truly.”

Bethany Joy Lenz pays tribute to Hayden Panettiere after 26-year friendship

Bethany Joy Lenz has shared a deeply personal tribute to Hayden Panettiere, recalling the actor as a child when they worked together on the soap opera Guiding Light.

“There is nothing that posting pictures on the internet can do. I avoid it usually in moments like this. But I'm here with my head in my hands and I don’t know what else to do in aside from praying for her soul, which I have done and will continue,” the One Tree Hill star wrote on Instagram.

Lenz, who was 18 when Panettiere was around nine or 10, remembered the young actor running through the Screen Gems studio in New York “laughing and playing games in between Guiding Light blocking and camera rehearsals”.

“Her intelligence was astonishing,” Lenz wrote. “She understood scenes and nuance and human struggle like no child I’d ever seen on camera.”

Lenz said they remained in touch “over the years”, comparing their relationship to “the cousin in the family reunion who got famous and life moved her away”.

“I don’t understand how this is real,” she wrote. “Everything seemed to be turning around. 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 surrounded by love.”

Viola Davis mourns Hayden Panettiere as ‘a beautiful phoenix’

Viola Davis mourns Hayden Panettiere as ‘a beautiful phoenix’

Viola Davis has remembered Hayden Panettiere as an “old, wise soul” with “such a deep heart” after her death at 36.

Davis and Panettiere acted together twice, first in the 2006 drama The Architect, in which Panettiere played Christina alongside Davis as activist Tonya Neeley, and later in the 2016 courtroom drama Custody. In Custody, Davis played family court judge Martha Schulman while Panettiere portrayed lawyer Ally Fisher.

“What an amazing talent you were....so gifted,” she wrote on Instagram. She added that both she and her husband, Julius Tennon, “loved working with you”.

She continued: “I wish the world had more time with you because I had a burning curiosity about who you were becoming. I saw this beautiful Phoenix rising from the ashes. Your tests became your testimony, and your testimony became your legacy. You will be remembered.

“Rest well, Hayden. Sending healing prayers to your family, your daughter, and all who loved you. May they always speak your name.”

Survived by her daughter and parents

Hayden Panettiere is survived by her 11-year-old daughter, Kaya, who she shared with her ex-fiancé Wladimir Klitschko.

She is also survived by her mother, former soap actor Lesley Vogel, and her father, Alan “Skip” Panettiere, who was a former New York City Fire Department chief.

PETA remembers Panettiere as ‘fierce ally’ for animals

PETA senior vice-president Lisa Lange said Panettiere “became a household name playing a hero on TV, but to animals, she was the real deal”.

“She fearlessly paddled into the blood-stained waters of Taiji, Japan to stare down dolphin hunters during their annual massacre,” Lange said in a statement. The actor had travelled to Taiji, Japan, in 2007 and joined other activists in a protest against the annual dolphin hunt, footage of which appeared in the Oscar-winning 2009 documentary The Cove.

In 2010, she called SeaWorld’s practice of keeping dolphins in tanks and making them perform “disgusting”, asking: “How do you put an interactive, social animal in a tub and make them do tricks?”

Lange said: “The world has lost a kind soul and the animals a fierce ally, and everyone at PETA holds her memory close.”

Alexa PenaVega mourns Hayden Panettiere and fellow child stars

Spy Kids star Alexa PenaVega has paid tribute to Hayden Panettiere, looking back on the loss of the actors who grew up in the entertainment industry alongside her.

PenaVega named Panettiere, Michelle Trachtenberg, and Daveigh Chase, whose deaths have occurred within less than two years. “Hayden, Michelle, Daveigh… my heart is heavy today,” she wrote on Instagram. “These aren’t just names from my childhood. They’re girls I grew up alongside, sharing a world that was exciting and also incredibly hard.”

She added: “We were kids navigating something so big, and not everyone had the foundation or support they deserved. Today, I’m grieving and holding their families close in my prayers and thinking of everyone still fighting battles we cannot see. Hug your people close today.”

Panettiere died aged 36 on Sunday, while Trachtenberg, 39, died in February 2025 from complications of diabetes mellitus, and Chase, 35, died in June 2026 from AIDS, with chronic polysubstance use listed as a significant contributing condition.