- Hayden Panettiere died Aug. 16 at 36; responders found her unresponsive and in cardiac arrest, pronounced dead at 2:32 p.m.
- Her estranged mother Lesley Vogel spoke to NBC News Aug. 18, confirming their long estrangement and saying she plans to seek answers.
- Vogel said boyfriend Brian Hickerson was at the scene and that his account contains unexplained gaps, including questions about Narcan.
- Vogel said she will speak with police, may pursue further investigation, and vowed to seek justice while publicly defending her grief.
- Many celebrities and colleagues offered tributes, describing Panettiere as talented, struggling, and mourned by co-stars like Connie Britton and Viola Davis.
Responses to actress Hayden Panettiere's death continue to flood in; one of note comes from her estranged mother.
On Aug. 16, Panettiere died at age 36. First responders and EMS personnel arrived at a Greenville, South Carolina, residence Sunday following a 911 call and found Panettiere "unresponsive" and in cardiac arrest, according to the coroner’s office. They attempted advanced cardiac life support, but their efforts were unsuccessful. Officials said Panettiere was pronounced dead at 2:32 p.m.
Panettiere's mother, Lesley Vogel, broke her silence on Aug. 18, when she talked exclusively to NBC News. Panettiere and Vogel had been estranged at the time of Panettiere's death.
What happened between Hayden Panettiere and her mother?
Vogel, also an actress, managed the Nashville star's career from a very young age, which complicated their relationship. “Everything was business,” Panettiere said in a May 2026 appearance on On Purpose with Jay Shetty to promote her memoir This Is Me: A Reckoning. “I became the confidant and the assistant and the therapist and the shoulder to cry on and everything but her child.”
At 19, Panettiere attempted to end their professional relationship to rebuild a familial one, but she was let down. She recalled her mother saying, "You owe me," and walking away. “The fact that she didn’t care to have a relationship with me was a tough pill to swallow," she said on the podcast.
When Panettiere was promoting her memoir, Vogel confirmed their estrangement in a statement to Page Six. "After 20 years of trauma, I took the advice of professionals and chose the no-contact route," Vogel told the outlet. "As many parents of entertainment children [know], we are all too familiar with the painful observation of watching the self-destructive paths they sometimes choose. No parent hopes for this scenario; we want our children to be the best of themselves and live a peaceful, joyful life."
What did Panettiere's mom say about her daughter's death?
Vogel, when speaking to NBC News last week, reflected on her daughter's death and revealed details about her on-again, off-again boyfriend, Brian Hickerson, who was at the scene when she died.
"I think Hayden was an amazingly talented person in so many departments and I think young people who grow up in the entertainment industry — it is a struggle and it's a very challenging industry and it's not unusual for them to sadly find the wrong path,” Vogel said.
"People, they feel pushed into things, even the managers and agents want to control them, and I think it becomes very difficult to be true to yourself, and I think Hayden sadly lost her way and I wish it were different." In her memoir, Panettiere revealed that when she was promoting Heroes at 16, a member of her team gave her what they called "happy pills" to make her appear peppy and energetic for press. She wrote that they were “the gateway drug that ushered me toward the good of pharmaceuticals and the downfall of addiction.”
What did Lesley Vogel say about Brian Hickerson?
A heavily redacted report from the Greenville Police Department indicated that Hickerson and his brother, Zach Hickerson, were with her at the Judson Mill Lofts apartment complex when she died. In 2020, Panettiere had filed for a restraining order against Hickerson after he allegedly struck Panettiere in the face with a closed fist at an Airbnb in Wyoming on February 14, 2020. TMZ obtained court documents filed in Hickerson's 2020 criminal case, which included alleged threats he sent to Panettiere following his arrest.
"This person in her life that we have been trying to get rid of for quite some time was with her at her death and that was Brian Hickerson," Vogel said.
"There is a lot of history in the past that Brian has enabled Hayden many times and this is why her father and I had been concerned for a long time about him and frankly, his family," Vogel added. "It's not just him, it's his family. We are trying to get information."
Vogel said that given Panettiere’s history with Hickerson, she plans to speak with police to better understand what happened.
"We had been concerned about this for many years," Vogel told NBC News. She added that she is not currently pursuing a private investigation but said that could change depending on what she learns. "I feel I owe her that." Panettiere's official cause of death has not been determined.
How has Lesley Vogel responded to criticism?
On Aug. 23, Vogel gave an interview to the Daily Mail, clarifying further details about her relationship with Panettiere, Panettiere's death, Hickerson's alleged involvement, and the media response to Vogel's first interview.
Hickerson, Vogel said, told police that Hayden was doing her makeup at the Greenville Airbnb around 10:30 a.m. on Sunday, Aug. 16, when he left to run an errand.
According to Vogel, Hickerson told police that he returned later and went to take a nap. Vogel said Hickerson's account to police did not indicate that he saw or spoke with Hayden after returning.
At some point afterward, Hickerson told police, his brother Zach knocked on the door, prompting Brian to get up and answer it. Hayden was then found unresponsive, according to Vogel.
Vogel suspects unexplained gaps in that account, specifically the presence of Narcan, which, according to his brother Zach, Brian administered. Vogel also doubts Brian's claim that he found Hayden unresponsive.
"I don't know how you can take a nap near someone who's dying and not realize something's wrong. How do you do that?" Vogel asked. "When the EMTs came, it was for a cardiac arrest. People in cardiac arrest aren't just lying still. They make noise."
"I think Brian called his brother," Vogel continued. "My opinion. I think he knew she was deceased, called his brother, and tried and built this story."
Vogel went on to say that she is driven to seek "justice" for her daughter: "...This is not the time for me to be weak. I don't have the luxury right now of being weak. I have too much to do for Hayden. When I'm done with that, then I will give myself the luxury to mourn — deeply mourn."
"I'm not saying I'm not grieving now," Vogel continued. "I am, and I do have my moments. But the bigger picture right now is I have to stay strong. I don't have an option."
Responding to those who have criticized her first statements following her daughter's death, Vogel said, "I was very, very hurt and deeply disappointed in the lack of professionalism, the lack of compassion in slamming someone who's lost two children, without even a modicum of consideration. No one reached out to me before. It's shameful. It's unconscionable to me."
Though Vogel and Panettiere were estranged at the time of Panettiere's death, Vogel clarified to The New York Times on Sunday that about a year ago, she spent time in Los Angeles to help her daughter during some physical struggles.
"She was in pain. She was afraid. She couldn’t physically function properly," Vogel said. During that time, Vogel brought her daughter to doctors and helped Panettiere experiment with massage and acupuncture to try to relieve a "pins and needles" sensation in her lower extremities that made it difficult to walk. Vogel told the outlet that she and Panettiere later had a falling out, in part because of Vogel's efforts to keep Hickerson out of Panettiere's life.
Additionally, Vogel spoke to Good Morning America for an interview that aired on Monday. Again, Vogel addressed "the haters out there" who have criticized Vogel's expressions of grief.
"You don’t have a right to tell me how I mourn the loss of my second child. That’s my domain," Vogel said, also referencing the 2023 death of her 28-year-old son, Jansen.
Vogel also described her first reaction to the news of Panettiere's death: "I was numb. I was just numb. I just couldn’t feel anything. I still am not grasping this as real. It just doesn’t feel real. My mind tells me it’s not at times. It’s going to be a process."
Vogel reflected on what she thinks may have caused her daughter's struggles: "Hayden had a very happy life until she got Heroes at 16. Here she was, the star of a major TV series. I would say at about 17, I started seeing her going downhill. As she got older, it wasn’t my voice anymore, I wasn't in charge of her choices. I tried to give her the best advice I could. But any young person, teen, they want to be liberated. And I get that."
Vogel also disputed Panettiere’s account in her 2026 memoir, in which the actress recalled that Vogel told her, "You owe me" after Panettiere said she no longer wanted her mother to manage her career.
"I remember being in her trailer and literally saying nothing. I knew that day would come. It’s not that I didn’t expect it. It was a very brief conversation, then she turned and went to set," Vogel claimed. "I know I didn’t say what she said I said."
"It is my belief that she was suffering," Vogel emphasized as the interview ended. "That doesn’t make sense, because when you look at a beautiful girl who's got a beautiful career, even though it has its ups and downs, you look at that big picture and go, 'Why would you be suffering?'" Vogel said. "You can have, on the exterior, all of this, but that doesn’t mean what’s going on [inside you] matches."
Celebrities respond to Panettiere's death
Gayle King and her CBS Mornings colleagues shared candid responses to Vogel's comments during the Wednesday, Aug. 19 broadcast of the show. "It makes me so sad [about] the opportunity that you have after your daughter’s death that that’s what you choose to leave us with," King said.
Other celebs have paid tribute to the late actress and mother on social media. "I love you. Don't be gone. Don't be gone. Please. Please," actress Selma Blair commented under Panettiere's final Instagram post.
Actress Kim Cattrall, who portrayed Panettiere’s mother in the 2005 Disney movie Ice Princess, shared an Instagram post mourning Panettiere: "Rest in peace, sweet Hayden. Gone far too soon."
Solange Knowles commemorated her Bring It On: All or Nothing co-star in a series of Instagram stories. Hilary Duff remembered Panettiere as "hardworking and effervescent" in an Instagram post.
Actor Justin Chatwin, who appeared alongside Panettiere in her final film, Sleepwalker, told PEOPLE that she "seemed different" when they reunited for the project. He said he could sense that the actress was "struggling" and "really lonely."
Comedian Rosie O'Donnell posted a photo of Panettiere on Instagram, captioned, "Oh my god – heartbroken."
Connie Britton, who starred with Panettiere on the country music drama Nashville, honored her late costar in an Instagram tribute.
"This was Hayden. Bursting with brilliance, shining so bright," Britton wrote, describing a photo of Panettiere. "I have no words for this sad song. Just heartbreak. I love you girl. Sleep easy now."
Actress Viola Davis, who starred alongside Panettiere in The Architect, described her late co-star as an "old, wise soul with such a deep heart."
