‘Scream’ Star Hayden Panettiere Found Dead by Friend as 911 Call Reports Woman in ‘Cardiac Arrest’
The entertainment industry is still reeling from the loss of Hayden Panettiere, whose sudden death this weekend left colleagues, friends, and fans searching for answers. As tributes continue pouring in from across Hollywood, new details are slowly emerging about exactly what happened in the hours before her passing.
Panettiere, who built a career spanning child stardom, teen film, and prestige television, was just days away from turning 37 when news broke of her death on Sunday, August 16. Her family confirmed the loss in a statement, describing her as an incredible light who brought joy to everyone who knew her, though they stopped short of revealing a cause.
According to authorities in Greenville, South Carolina, police and EMS personnel responded to a report of an unresponsive woman at Judson Mill Lofts on Easley Bridge Road at 1:51 p.m. that Sunday. Panettiere was pronounced dead at the scene, and the initial 911 call reportedly described a woman in cardiac arrest, according to details obtained by TMZ.
Panettiere was found by a friend inside the South Carolina residence, according to TMZ, which cited sources with direct knowledge of the situation. Emergency responders who arrived at the scene worked the call as a cardiac arrest, though the exact medical circumstances leading to her death have not been publicly disclosed.
Greenville Police told local outlet WYFF4 that the preliminary investigation has not indicated any signs of foul play or suspicious circumstances so far. Still, law enforcement sources have confirmed there is an open investigation into her death, and Panettiere’s publicist, Kasey Kitchen, said in a statement that more information was expected to follow in the days after.
Additional reporting from TMZ indicates Panettiere had flown from Los Angeles to South Carolina the day before her death alongside her on-and-off boyfriend, Brian Hickerson. A source close to the actress also told the outlet she had been dealing with back pain over the past year, though it remains unclear whether that detail has any connection to her death.
Panettiere’s death comes just three years after the sudden loss of her younger brother, Jansen Panettiere, who died in 2023 at age 28 from an enlarged heart coupled with aortic valve complications. She had spoken openly in interviews and in her recently released memoir, ‘This Is Me: A Reckoning,’ about the guilt and grief that followed his passing.
She was also candid in recent years about her struggles with postpartum depression and addiction following the birth of her daughter, Kaya, whom she shares with former fiancé Wladimir Klitschko. Her openness about those battles had, in many ways, defined the more recent chapter of her public life, one that fans and colleagues frequently praised as courageous.
News of her death prompted an outpouring of grief across social media and within the industry, with colleagues from ‘Scream,’ ‘Heroes,’ and ‘Nashville’ among those sharing memories of working alongside her. As investigators continue piecing together the circumstances of her final hours, the loss has left many in Hollywood grappling with just how much time has passed since Panettiere first became a household name as a child star.
As more details continue to emerge about this heartbreaking story, we’ll share updates as they become available, and we invite readers to share their memories of Hayden Panettiere in the comments.
