In Memoriam - Hayden Lesley Panettiere, 1989-2026

Small in stature, Hayden lived a big life. A professional actress for all of her 36 years, she was the daughter of Lesley Vogel and Skip (Alan) Panettiere, sister to Jansen and mother to Kaya.

Her family home was in Palisades, although her career kept her on the move from an early age. At just eleven months, she appeared in her first Playskool commercial, and by ÿve had appeared in nearly 50 commercials. At four, she had a recurring role in One Life to Live, then moved on to The Guiding Light until she was around eleven, earning recognition for her portrayal of a child with leukemia. Locally, she frequented the Palisades swim club and Galaxy gymnastics. In 1999, she was a fairy in the Children’s Shakespeare Theater’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

She was nine when she began her ÿlm career with Disney-Pixar’s A Bug’s Life, voicing Dot. She received acclaim for Remember the Titans and later appeared in Racing Stripes, Ice Princess, Heroes, Nashville and Scream, among many others. At 16, she became the beloved cheerleader in Heroes and at 23, she joined

Hayden as a fairy in Midsummer Night's Dream Nashville, where she also became a recording artist with songs charting on Billboard. Her final film was the 2026 thriller Sleepwalker.

Beyond acting, Hayden was a passionate advocate for marine animals. She worked with the Whaleman Foundation, appeared in the documentary The Cove, and later partnered with PETA to oppose the captivity of dolphins and whales. In 2026, she released her memoir, This Is Me: A Reckoning, which has recently appeared at the top of the New York Times best seller list for non-fiction books.

A full life. Gone too soon. Rest in peace.