Hayden Panettiere, star of 'Heroes' and 'Nashville', dies at 36

Los Angeles: American actress Hayden Panettiere has died at the age of 36, her family confirmed on Sunday, just days before she was due to turn 37.

Her father, Skip Panettiere, announced the death in a statement shared with media outlets, calling her passing a "tragic" loss and describing her as "an incredible light and a force of nature." He asked for privacy as the family processes the loss. No cause of death has been disclosed, and the circumstances surrounding her passing remain unclear, according to reports.

Panettiere began her career as a child actor and went on to become one of Hollywood's most recognisable faces of the late 2000s. She earned global fame playing cheerleader Claire Bennet, a teenager with regenerative powers, on the NBC sci-fi series "Heroes." She later starred as rising country star Juliette Barnes on the musical drama "Nashville," a role that brought her two Golden Globe nominations.

Her film credits included "Remember the Titans," "I Love You, Beth Cooper," and the horror franchise "Scream," in which she appeared in both the 2011 and 2023 instalments.

In recent years, Panettiere had spoken openly about postpartum depression, addiction and alcoholism, describing a difficult period that led her to give up custody of her daughter, Kaya, in 2018. Kaya's father is Ukrainian former boxing champion Wladimir Klitschko, to whom Panettiere was previously engaged.

She had recently released a memoir reflecting on her childhood fame, motherhood, mental health struggles and had openly talked about the loss of her younger brother, Voice-actor Jansen Panettiere, who died in 2023 at age 28 from a heart condition.