Hayden Panettiere: The Child Star Is All Grown Up Now

Believe it or not, but Hayden Panettiere has actually been acting for nearly her entire life. When Panettiere first got started in the entertainment industry, she starred on the popular daytime soap opera One Life To Live as Sarah Roberts. At the time, Panettiere was only a little girl, and she appeared on the show from 1994 to 1997. However, Panettiere's talent was clearly apparent, as she soon went on to star in many other projects as a young child, including the soap opera Guiding Light, starting in 1998 as Lizzie Spaulding. She filmed her last episode as Spaulding in 2000.

In January 2017, Panettiere reflected on her time as a child actress during an interview with Stephen Colbert on "The Late Show," and she explained how she was so carefree back in those days. "Your confidence is through the roof," she said. "I don't know where that went ... I'm saying you could be in your birthday suit and you could be the most confident person in the room at 7 years old." 

No stranger to the actor's life and Hollywood, Hayden Panettiere had landed a major film role by the time she turned 11 years old. In the 2000 movie Remember the Titans, Panettiere played the character Sheryl Yoast, the sassy, smart, and kind daughter of Coach Bill Yoast. The movie follows the integration of a high school football team in Alexandria, Va. The movie is based on a true story and tackles difficult issues, such as race, discrimination, and violence, and Panettiere was lucky enough to star alongside Denzel Washington, Ryan Gosling, and Will Patton.

It's pretty impressive that Panettiere was able to take on such an intense role at such a young age. In fact, Panettiere's character has often been heralded as the hero of the movie for bringing people together, as noted by Bustle. Clearly, Panettiere's talent has been there from the start.

As anyone who has watched "Nashville" knows, Hayden Panettiere is an incredibly talented singer. What you might not know, though, is that she has dabbled in music outside of the show, too. She cut her first tracks as a teenager and can be heard on the soundtracks of several films including "Tiger Cruise," "The Dust Factory," "Cinderella 3: A Twist in Time," and "Ice Princess." She even starred in music videos for some of her songs, including 2004's "My Hero Is You" (from "Tiger Cruise"), 2005's "I Fly" (from "Ice Princess"), and 2006's "I Still Believe" (from "Cinderella III: A Twist in Time").

Panettiere released the single "Wake Up Call" in 2008 but isn't proud of it, comparing it to Paris Hilton's 2006 track "Stars Are Blind." She told New York Magazine (via Vulture), "When I realized that it sounded like Paris' song I was like, 'ohhh my God.' But at that point, I was a puppet, basically. It wasn't me."

Disillusioned by the experience and her lack of control over her sound, Panettiere's plans to release an album collapsed. While we still might see her launch a music career one day, there's one big thing holding her back. "Performing live has always terrified me," she admitted. "Stages have always terrified me. They never used to when I was little. But when you grow up in the spotlight, and you're constantly reading things that are awful about you ... it sticks with you."

Hayden Panettiere's most memorable cheerleading role is probably that of Claire Bennet in "Heroes," but she also played a cheerleader in the 2006 film "Bring It On: All or Nothing." The straight-to-DVD follow-up to 2000's original "Bring It On" movie starring Kirsten Dunst is one of those films that's so cheesy you can't help but watch it. Per Rotten Tomatoes, the film focuses on high school cheerleader and queen bee Britney Allen, who has to move to a new school where she challenges cheer captain Camille, played by Solange Knowles. While Rotten Tomatoes only gives the film a 20% Tomatometer score, it has an audience rating of 70%. 

According to Slate, the film brought in $18 million, but it doesn't hold up well in more culturally aware times. Panettiere's krumping — a style of hip-hop dancing that originated in the African American community— attracted a lot of criticism, with Junkee calling it a "godawful attempt." 

Slate also noted that the "franchise has flirted on several occasions with saying something of substance about race, but has never quite followed through." The outlet added that Crenshaw Heights, the underfunded school Panettiere's character transfers to, is heavily stereotyped, writing, "It's a place where people breakdance before class and must pass through metal detectors to get to homeroom."

While starring on "Heroes," Hayden Panettiere began dating Milo Ventimiglia, who played her uncle on the show. The relationship made headlines, not only because they were costars but also because Ventimiglia was 12 years older than Panettiere, who had just turned 18 when they started dating.

It's an experience that Ventimiglia says he wouldn't repeat, although he doesn't have regrets about the romance. "Never do it again," he told Mr Porter of the lesson learned from the two-year relationship. "There are things that happen to you in your life that shape who you are. Everything I've been through, from jobs to friendships to partnerships, everything has built me to who I am. You learn from it. You learn a better way of doing things. ... But I wouldn't change a thing. When you get knocked over the head in life, it builds your perspective."

A source told People that the couple's 2009 breakup was, at least in part, due to the age gap, saying, "[Panettiere] still has growing up to do and he's very low-key."

While Hayden Panettiere's professional life was in an upward swing — with all her projects and leading roles — her personal life also changed a lot as well. In 2009, Panettiere met Wladimir Klitschko, a former professional boxer, at a friends' book launch party, according to E! News. It seemed as though the pair really took a liking to each other quickly. 

In an interview on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Panettiere explained that she and Klitschko first met when she was only 19, and her first thought was how tall Klitschko was. "I know that I'm small, but he's large. That's how we met. I said, 'You're huge.' And he said, 'You're tiny.' And that was it." Basically, it was love at first sight. And while Panettiere and Klitschko might have had a complicated relationship later on, when they first got together, it was very obviously something that seemed meant to be.

In 2013, Hayden Panettiere and Wladimir Klitschko took their relationship to the next level when they got engaged. Though Panettiere was quite low-key about the ordeal, not posting anything to social media immediately after it happened as some celebs do, she did confirm the happy news during an interview on Live with Kelly and Michael. While wearing a live boa constrictor like a necklace, naturally.

While Panettiere didn't reveal much about her engagement, she did open up a bit about the wedding planning process. During an interview on The Ellen DeGeneres Show after her engagement, she explained that her fiancé was a bit befuddled with American weddings. "He's very confused about our traditions," she said. "He just doesn't know that the woman's side of the family is supposed to pay for the wedding. We don't need him to know that," she joked. 

Panettiere definitely kept her relationship pretty private, but there was no hiding her engagement ring!

After Hayden Panettiere gave birth to her daughter, she got real about her struggles as a first-time mom. When Panettiere opened up about her own postpartum depression, it really got people talking, and it helped to fight the stigma surrounding the disorder.

"I do feel and hope it's made other people's lives better and more of an understanding because postpartum depression was not something that I ever understood," she told E! News in 2016 about her decision to check herself into a treatment center for PPD after she gave birth. "You could never understand it unless you have a personal involvement with it. I didn't realize how much of a stigma it had about it," she said.

Truly, Panettiere's blatant honesty really made a difference, and it showed how truly brave she is when it comes to helping other women. No matter how long she battled postpartum depression, she did what she had to do to be the best mother for her daughter, and that's what's important.

After Hayden Panettiere and Wladimir Klitschko split up, she began to date someone new. When Panettiere first started dating new beau Brian Hickerson, there was some drama from the get-go. As one source told Us Weekly of their relationship in 2018, it was "not a healthy situation."

Unfortunately, it seems as though that reflection might have been more of a premonition. In May 2019, Hickerson was arrested for domestic violence. Hickerson's bail was set at $50,000 at the time, according to In Touch. Eventually, the charges against Hickerson were dropped, but the couple appeared to split up for a while before getting back together in November of 2019, as reported by People. Though they got back together, a source told the magazine that Panettiere's family wasn't thrilled about her decision. "They are not fans of Brian," the source said. "It's clear that he has issues of his own, not to mention the anger issues, which is obviously a big one." 

In February 2020, Hickerson was arrested for domestic violence again after allegedly punching Panettiere in the head, as reported by TMZ. At the time of this writing, it's unclear if Panettiere and Hickerson are still together.

In 2022, Hayden Panettiere revealed that she had lived with an opioid and alcohol addiction for years. "I was on top of the world and I ruined it," she told People. "I'd think I hit rock bottom, but then there's that trap door that opens." The actress revealed that her addiction began when she was just a teenager and was given "happy pills." She explained, "They were to make me peppy during interviews. 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."

In a "Red Table Talk" interview (via People), Panettiere said things got so bad that she was close to doing irreparable damage to her liver. "I looked up liver transplant and it said that they only give you five years," she said. "But to have a death sentence still there, and only five years to live, that was terrifying."

It was a reality check that eventually led Panettiere to seek treatment. "It's an everyday choice, and I'm checking in with myself all the time," she said of her recovery. "But I'm just so grateful to be part of this world again, and I will never take it for granted again."

If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).

After "Nashville" wrapped in 2018, Hayden Panettiere took a break from acting and focused on her addiction recovery (via People). The show remained the most recent project on her resume for years, until she joined the cast of "Scream 6," reprising the role of Kirby Reed. Not only did the film mark her return to acting, but it was also her first movie since she portrayed Ally Fisher in "Custody," which was released in 2016. 

Panettiere previously portrayed the character of Kirby Reed in "Scream 4," per Deadline. Her return to the franchise came about after Panettiere asked to be included in another "Scream" installment. "I called them up myself and was like, 'So, you guys don't, like, happen to want to bring Kirby back, do you?'" she said on "Good Morning America," adding, "I wanted to be in it that badly."

"Scream 6" is slated for a 2023 release.