Hayden Panettiere Dies at 36; Greenville Police Investigate

Hayden Panettiere, 36, was found unresponsive and pronounced dead Sunday at a residence in Greenville, South Carolina. Emergency responders arrived after a 911 call and provided medical aid at the scene.

Greenville Police said investigators do not suspect foul play or other suspicious circumstances. The department reported that upon arrival responders administered medical assistance, but Panettiere was declared dead at the scene. The case is being handled with the Greenville County Coroner’s Office.

Officials confirmed Panettiere had been temporarily staying at the Greenville residence and that an acquaintance placed the 911 call.

Dispatch audio released publicly included discussion of a possible overdose and cardiac arrest. The official cause of death will be determined after the coroner’s review, which may include autopsy and toxicology testing.

Panettiere began acting as a child, appearing on the soap opera One Life to Live and in the film Remember the Titans. She gained wider recognition as Claire Bennet on the television series Heroes and later voiced Samantha ‘Sam’ Giddings in the video game Until Dawn.

On May 19, 2026, she published a memoir titled This Is Me: A Reckoning, in which she wrote about personal struggles, the death of her brother, tensions with her mother and her experience with postpartum depression.

Authorities have asked that no further details be released until the coroner completes its review and investigators finish their work.