Watch: Hayden Panettiere’s Death Investigation Results Revealed, Case Closed
The police investigation into Hayden Panettiere‘s death has ended.
Two months after the Nashville alum died at 36 in a South Carolina apartment, the Greenville Police Department confirmed that authorities have closed her case.
“Based on the Medical Examiner’s determination and the findings of the investigation, Hayden Panettiere’s death has been ruled accidental,” police said in a statement to E! News Oct. 28. “The Greenville Police Department has concluded its investigation.”
The Greenville County Coroner’s Office previously determined that Panettiere died from “toxic effects” of fentanyl and four other substances, with officials ruling her manner of death to be an accident.
In a coroner’s report, the medical examiner stated that other substances found in her system included 4-ANPP—a chemical compound often found in illicitly manufactured fentanyl—as well as anti-anxiety medication Alprazolam, muscle relaxer Methocarbamol and Quetiapine, a prescription drug commonly used to treat depression, schizophrenia or bipolar disorder.
Prior to her death, Panettiere was open about her struggles with addiction, including how it was exacerbated when she experienced postpartum depression following the 2014 birth of her and ex Wladimir Klitschko‘s daughter Kaya.
She detailed her issues with opioids and alcohol in her 2026 memoir This Is Me: A Reckoning, writing that a doctor had warned her, “If I didn’t stop drinking, I’d be dead in five years.”
Panettiere’s on-and-off boyfriend Brian Hickerson and his brother Zach Hickerson called 911 on Aug. 16 after finding the Heroes actress unresponsive at the rental home where she had been staying, according to a police report obtained by E! News.
Upon arrival, first responders performed life-saving measured on Panettiere, who they said had suffered cardiac arrest. She was pronounced dead at 2:32 p.m.
Investigators eventually found blue pressed pills—which are counterfeit tablets made to look like regulated prescription medications—that tested positive for fentanyl in the home, according to a coroner’s report. Officials said a straw was also discovered on a table near where Panettiere was found, as well as a sunglasses case containing white powder inside her suitcase.
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Zach later publicly spoke out to address “speculations and accusations” surrounding himself and his brother, who was first linked to Panettiere in 2018, saying that the two are “beyond heartbroken and devastated” by her death.
“At this time, I want to clarify my involvement in effort to keep the focus on the fact that we lost one of the most precious individuals on this earth,” he told TMZ in an Aug. 21 statement, “and to allow those that cared about her to mourn without additional noise, chaos, and misinformation being created and propagated by the media as well as the public.”
Meanwhile, Brian told paparazzi when approached on Sept. 16, “How do you think I’m doing?”
Read on for more details about the investigation into Panettiere’s death.
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“Brian did not become emotional until EMS declared her officially deceased.”E! News has reached out to Zach for comment but has not heard back. Meanwhile, Brian’s attorney Sloan Ellis has spoken out.”Hayden’s death remains under investigation and it is important to allow that investigation to proceed,” Ellis told E! News Aug. 20. “As has been publicly reported, police confirmed there were no signs of foul play. Out of respect for Hayden’s loved ones and the ongoing investigation, there will be no further comment at this time.”And while police told People officers “responded to a call for a welfare check at a home belonging to Brian Hickerson’s family” on Aug. 19, they noted “the call is unrelated to the Hayden Panettiere death investigation and did not require an incident report.”
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While Panettiere—whose brother Jansen died in 2023 at age 28—and her mom had publicly spoken about their estrangement, Vogel remembered her daughter as “an amazingly talented person in so many departments.””I think young people who grow up in the entertainment industry—it is a struggle and it’s a very challenging industry,” she added, “and it’s not unusual for them to sadly find the wrong path.”Additionally, her ex Wladimir Klitschko addressed his “profound shock and grief” he and their daughter Kaya were facing in the wake of Panettiere’s death. The Ukranian boxer further vowed to keep the Nashville alum’s legacy alive in Kaya’s memory.
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