In brief
Hayden Panettiere, known for her roles in "Heroes" and "Nashville," died at 36 in South Carolina after being found unresponsive during a drug overdose. The Greenville County Coroner’s Office concluded the fatal combination of fentanyl, Xanax, methocarbamol, quetiapine and other substances caused her death. Panettiere had publicly spoken about her drug struggles, and her death underscores the broader opioid epidemic affecting both the entertainment industry and society at large.
Actress Hayden Panettiere died from the toxic effects of fentanyl, Xanax and several other drugs in her system, according to a recent autopsy completed by the Greenville County Coroner’s Office in South Carolina.
The coroner’s report said the death was accidental, noting no signs of trauma contributed to her passing. Panettiere, 36, had been found unresponsive at a South Carolina residence last month.
She had openly detailed her substance‑abuse struggles in her memoir and media interviews. The coroner also detected methocarbamol, a prescription muscle relaxant, and quetiapine, an antipsychotic, among the substances in her bloodstream.
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths in the United States over the past five years. The report confirmed that emergency responders carried out advanced cardiac life‑support measures, but resuscitation was unsuccessful.
Both the DEA and local police are jointly investigating the death.
Panettiere’s ex‑boyfriend, Brian Hickerson, who has admitted abusing her, and his brother Zack were present when emergency services arrived, according to the police report.
Just months earlier, the actress released a memoir that expanded on her challenges with addiction and postpartum depression.
She cited a “happy pill” incident at a red carpet event during her early career that introduced her to drugs when she was 16.
Later she voiced that “the drugs and alcohol became something I almost couldn’t live without.”
Panettiere’s brother, Jansen, died at 28 from a heart condition but also struggled with heroin and cocaine, as disclosed in her book.
