Watch: Hayden Panettiere Suffered Apparent Overdose, Cardiac Arrest Before Being Found Unresponsive
Some questions have been answered when it comes to Hayden Panettiere’s tragic death.
After the Heroes actress suddenly died at age 36 Aug. 16, an initial autopsy report confirmed “no signs of trauma” were discovered that would have contributed to her death.
“The cause and manner of death remain pending further investigation and completion of additional studies,” an Aug. 17 press release from the Greenville County Coroner’s Office, obtained by E! News, stated. “The investigation remains active and ongoing.”
Elsewhere in the report, authorities confirmed a woman—later identified as Panettiere—was reported to have cardiac arrest in a Greenville, South Carolina, residence on Aug. 16 at approximately 1:51 p.m. local time. Emergency services performed “advanced cardiac life support measures” but were unsuccessful. Panettiere was pronounced dead at 2:32 p.m. local time.
A 911 call audio obtained by TMZ and People also shared that an emergency medical worker claimed they were called to Panettiere’s residence for an “overdose.”
Panettiere—mom to daughter Kaya, 11, with ex Wladimir Klitschko—recently published her memoir This Is Me: A Reckoning in May, where she explored her struggles with sobriety following addiction and postpartum depression.
“I never want to stop evolving and changing for the better, and I’ll forever be a work in progress,” the Ice Princess star wrote in her book, “but one thing I know from my 36 years in the public eye is this: Life is a process that evolves day by day, year by year—and like it or not—you are engaged in a cycle of growth until the moment you take your last breath.”
Roy Rochlin/FilmMagic
Indeed, while Panettiere shared her team had initially encouraged her drug use to make her “more peppy” in interviews during her rise to fame, she shared it was also what “ruined” her career.
And that’s exactly why she came forward with her battle.
“I love being in a position now to be able to help people who are struggling with it still, and let know that there is a time, a period of time when you get over the hill,” Panettiere said in an interview with People in 2024. “It is there. Recovery is real. It can happen.”
As she put it, “Long as you remember to stay on the same path, to stay sober and keep on doing those things that make you happy, make you feel healthy, make you laugh…you can be happier than you’ve ever been before in your life.”
For a look back at Panettiere’s life in photos, keep reading…
Photo by Ann Limongello/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images
Photo by Margaret Norton/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images
Photo by Ron Galella/Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images
Photo by Jean-Paul Aussenard/WireImage
Photo by Evan Agostini/Getty Images
Photo by Evan Agostini/Getty Images
Photo by M. Caulfield/WireImage for ABC Cable Networks Group
Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Photo by Jean-Paul Aussenard/WireImage
Photo by Sylvain Gaboury/FilmMagic
Photo by Valerie Macon/Getty Images
Photo by Taylor Hill/FilmMagic)
Jason Merritt/Getty Images
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images
Photo by Kevork Djansezian/NBC/NBCUniversal via Getty Images
Eugene Gologursky/Getty Images for Time Warner Cable
Lars Baron/Bongarts/Getty Images
Rick Diamond/Getty Images
Roy Rochlin/FilmMagic
Hayden Panettiere/Twitter
Amanda Edwards/Getty Images
Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images
Nathan Congleton/NBC via Getty Images
Jeff Neira/Disney via Getty Images
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