Hayden Panettiere died from the toxic effects of fentanyl and other drugs, with the Greenville County Coroner’s Office also ruling the actress’ death an accident.
Along with fentanyl, the coroner found traces of Alprazolam (more commonly known as Xanax), the muscle relaxant Methocarbamol, and Quetiapine, which is mainly used to treat schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, but can be used to treat depression. The statement from the coroner’s office — released over a month after Panettiere died unexpectedly at the age of 36 — reiterated that an autopsy found no signs of trauma that would have contributed to her death.
At the time of her death, police confirmed that they responded to a Greenville, South Carolina residence on August 16 after reports of “an unresponsive female.” “Upon arrival, medical assistance was administered; however, the individual, later identified as Hayden Panettiere, was pronounced deceased at the scene.” In dispatch audio obtained by People, officials on the call were heard discussing an “overdose” and “cardiac arrest.”
An investigation into Panettiere’s death was opened, though police said, “a preliminary investigation has not indicated any signs of foul play or suspicious circumstances.”
While the coroner’s statement provides new details about Panettiere’s death, the official investigation into it remains ongoing. The Greenville Police Department has been leading the ongoing investigation, reportedly with assistance from the Drug Enforcement Administration. A spokesperson for the Greenville Police Department did not immediately return a request for comment on the status of the case.
“It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden. She was an incredible light and a force of nature who brought immeasurable love and joy to all who knew her — and to the millions who watched her onscreen,” said her father, Skip Panettiere, in a statement to Rolling Stone provided by the actress’ representative. “We ask for privacy as our family takes time to process this unimaginable loss.”
Panettiere was known for her broad-ranging film and television roles in Remember the Titans, Raising Helen, Scream 4, Ice Princess, and I Love You, Beth Cooper. Her true breakout role came in 2006, when she played cheerleader Claire Bennet on the NBC sci-fi series Heroes for four seasons, but her star hit an all-time high as Juliette Barnes in the series Nashville from 2012 to 2018.
During that period, Panettiere admitted that she struggled with postpartum depression after the birth of her daughter Kaya Evdokia Klitschko, her only child with Ukrainian champion boxer Wladimir Klitschko, in 2014. She later revealed that she suffered from severe postpartum depression, substance abuse, and anxiety.
In her 2026 memoir This Is Me: A Reckoning, she admitted to drinking heavily in order to cope. She recalled waking up shaking and would need either a bottle of alcohol to get through the day or opioids to help her not drink. She wrote that a doctor told her she’d “be dead within five years” if she didn’t stop drinking. “The first thing I’d thought of when I woke up was alcohol,” she wrote. “Not my child, not my job, and not the rest of my life. I needed a drink to function — at 6 a.m.”
Paul Walter Houser exits, stage left, in ‘Resident Evil.’ Sony Pictures
