Hayden Panettiere Suffered Apparent Overdose, Cardiac Arrest

Hayden Panettiere Found Unresponsive, Death Under InvestigationMore information has come to light about Hayden Panettiere's death. After the Nashville star died Aug. 16 at age 36, South Carolina authorities shared details about her final moments in 911 dispatch calls obtained by People and TMZ. In the audio, the dispatcher directed medics to Panettiere's Greenville home, with an Emergency Medical Service worker reporting "overdose," before adding, "CPR in progress. When officers and EMS personnel responded to a call placed by the actress' acquaintance, they found an unresponsive woman at approximately 1:51 p.m. local time. "Upon arrival, medical assistance was administered," noted a statement to E! News, "however, the individual, later identified as Hayden Panettiere, was pronounced deceased at the scene." "The case is under investigation by the Greenville Police Department in conjunction with the Greenville County Coroner's Office," the message continued. "The preliminary investigation has not indicated any signs of foul play or suspicious circumstances." Panettiere—mom to daughter Kaia, 11, with ex Wladimir Klitschko— had been open about her yearslong sobriety journey after struggling with alcoholism and an opioid addiction."I was on top of the world and I ruined it," she told People in July 2022. "I'd think I hit rock bottom, but then there's that trap door that opens." The actress—who began working at 11 months old—recalled being offered "happy pills" at 15 before attending events. "They were to make me peppy during interviews," she admitted. "I had no idea that this was not an appropriate thing, or what door that would open for me when it came to my addiction." Although she struggled in her personal life, working on Heroes kept her somewhat in check. "My saving grace is that I couldn't be messy while on set and working," she explained. "But things kept getting out of control [off set]. And as I got older, the drugs and alcohol became something I almost couldn't live without." Roy Rochlin/FilmMagicAlcohol especially was a crutch. "Alcohol let me say 'f--k it, I'll deal with everything later,'" and within thirty seconds, I was in the zone. It was like coming up for air and breathing again," she wrote in her 2026 memoir This Is Me: A Reckoning, adding that a doctor once told her that if she didn't stop drinking, she'd "be dead within five years." Ultimately, in 2018, the Bring It On: All or Nothing actress gave Klitschko full custody as she focused on her sobriety. "This hasn't been easy and there were a lot of ups and downs," she explained to People. "But I don't regret even the ugliest things that have happened to me. I feel incredibly accomplished. And I feel like I have a second chance." For a look back at Panettiere's life, keep reading.Photo by Ann Limongello/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images1994Photo by Margaret Norton/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images1996Photo by Ron Galella/Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images1998Photo by Jean-Paul Aussenard/WireImage2001Photo by Evan Agostini/Getty Images2003Photo by Evan Agostini/Getty Images2004Photo by M. Caulfield/WireImage for ABC Cable Networks Group2004Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images2005Photo by Jean-Paul Aussenard/WireImage2006Photo by Sylvain Gaboury/FilmMagic2006Photo by Valerie Macon/Getty Images2008Photo by Taylor Hill/FilmMagic)2010Jason Merritt/Getty Images2012Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images2013Photo by Kevork Djansezian/NBC/NBCUniversal via Getty Images2014Eugene Gologursky/Getty Images for Time Warner Cable2014Lars Baron/Bongarts/Getty Images2015Rick Diamond/Getty Images2016Roy Rochlin/FilmMagic2017Hayden Panettiere/Twitter 2018Amanda Edwards/Getty Images2019 Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images2022Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images2023Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty Images2024Jeff Neira/Disney via Getty Images2026For the latest breaking news updates, click here to download the E! News App