American screen star Hayden Panettiere – known for her roles in TV series such as Heroes and Nashville, as well as horror franchise Scream – has died at the age of just 36.

Panettiere’s father, Skip, confirmed the death of the actor, who had a long and prolific career in entertainment after starting out as a child star.

“It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden,” he said in a statement to ABC News in the US.

“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 on screen.”

No cause of death has been provided.

Panettiere – who had a daughter in 2014 with her then partner, boxing champion Wladimir Klitschko – scored her breakout role as cheerleader Claire Bennet in the NBC science-fiction series Heroes in 2006.

She went on to play Juliette Barnes in the Emmy-nominated country music drama series Nashville (2012-18), earning two successive Golden Globe nominations for best actress, while her film roles included heroine survivor and fan favourite Kirby Reed in Scream 4 and Scream VI.

Panettiere also starred in teen rom-com I Love You, Beth Cooper, American football movie Remember the Titans and TV dramatisation Amanda Knox, and voiced Dot in Disney’s animated comedy A Bug’s Life.

She had been open about her struggles with alcohol addiction and depression, including after she had her daughter.

“I didn’t know where the alcoholism was ending and the postpartum was beginning,” Panetierre told Good Morning America in 2022.

“And I ran myself pretty ragged.”

The actor revealed further details about her personal battles as a child and adult star, and her decision to give full custody of her daughter to Klitschko, in her memoir This Is Me: A Reckoning, published earlier this year.

At the time, she told Extra TV that writing the book was both therapeutic and “terrifying”.

@extra_tv Hayden Panettiere has sadly died at 36. We last spoke to her in January and she opened up about writing her book, “This Is Me: A Reckoning.” She hoped by sharing her life experiences, she could inspire and help others through hard times while finding forgiveness for herself. #haydenpanettiere ♬ original sound – ExtraTV

Panetierre also acknowledged that This is Me had forced her to revisit her traumas, not just in the memoir but in subsequent interviews where she spoke about it.

“One of the things that I was most terrified about, when deciding whether or not to write this book, was that I knew what was going to come along with it,” she told The Hollywood Reporter.

“I had to sit with myself and make a decision, and I realised it was more important for me to share my stories and to wipe the slate clean.”

Panettiere brother, Jansen, who was also an actor, died in 2023 at the age of 28 from complications related to an enlarged heart.

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–with AP