Hayden Panettiere Biography

Hayden Leslie Panettiere (born August 21, 1989) is an American actress, model, singer, and activist. She is known for her roles as cheerleader Claire Bennet on the NBC sci-fi series Heroes (2006-10), Juliette Barnes in the ABC/CMT musical-drama series Nashville (2012-present) and Kairi in the video game series Kingdom Hearts.

A native of New York City, she first appeared in a commercial at the age of 11 months. She began her acting career by playing Sarah Roberts on One Life to Live (1994-97), and Lizzie Spaulding on Guiding Light (1996-2000), before starring at age 10 as Sheryl Yoast in the Disney feature film Remember the Titans. Other notable roles include her portrayal of the title character in the true crime drama Amanda Knox: Murder on Trial in Italy and Kirby Reed in the slasher film Scream 4. She received two nominations for the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress - Series, Miniseries or Television Film, for her work on Nashville in 2012 and 2013.

Early life

Panettiere was born in and partly raised in Palisades, New York. She is the daughter of Lesley R. Vogel, a former soap opera actress, and Alan Lee "Skip" Panettiere, a fire captain. She has Italian, and some English and German ancestry. She has one younger brother, fellow actor Jansen Panettiere. Her mother's family lives in Indiana.

After Panettiere attended South Orangetown Middle School in New York, she was homeschooled from grade nine to the completion of high school.

Career

Acting

Television

Panettiere first appeared in commercials at the age of 11 months, beginning with an advertisement for a Playskool toy train. She landed a role as Sarah Roberts on the ABC soap opera One Life to Live from 1994 to 1997, which was followed by Lizzie Spaulding on the CBS soap opera Guiding Light in 1996, and again from 1997 to 2000. While on Guiding Light, Panettiere's character Lizzie battled leukemia. For drawing the attention of daytime viewers to the disease, and for improving national awareness, the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society gave her its Special Recognition Award.

For her performance in Lifetime Television's 1999 TV movie If You Believe, she was nominated for the Young Artist Award for Young Actress Age Ten or Under in the category of Best Performance in a TV Movie or Pilot. Panettiere appeared on Fox's Ally McBeal as the title character's daughter, played the daughter of a man transitioning to female in HBO Films' Normal, had a recurring guest role on Malcolm in the Middle and guest starred in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit in two different roles. In 2004, Panettiere had her first starring role in the Disney Channel film Tiger Cruise.

Panettiere became most prominent as Claire Bennet in the NBC series Heroes, which was created by Tim Kring, as a high school cheerleader with regenerative healing powers. Thanks to her role on Heroes, she became a regular on the science fiction convention circuit, invited to attend conventions around the world in 2007, including Gen Con, New York Comic Con, and Fan Expo Canada. Panettiere has complained that her acting options are sometimes limited because "people look at [her] as either the popular cheerleader type or just the blonde".

In early 2007, Panettiere appeared on the MTV show, Punk'd. The appearance was engineered by her mother and involved a male "fan" discussing her work with her, instigating a jealous reaction from the man's spouse. In April 2012, she hosted an episode of the new series.

In March 2012, it was announced Panettiere had been cast opposite Connie Britton on the ABC musical drama series Nashville. She portrays Juliette Barnes. In May 2012, ABC bought the pilot as a series. The pilot reunites Panettiere with Burgess Jenkins (who appears in the first few episodes) from Remember the Titans. ABC canceled the series in May 2016 but it was later picked up by CMT and Hulu for a fifth season.

Films

Panettiere made her feature film debut with 1998's A Bug's Life, but her first film to actually be released was the same year's The Object of My Affection, in which she appears briefly as a mermaid in the school play in the opening scene. In 1999, she portrayed the girl on a sinking sailboat in Message In A Bottle. She played the role of Coach Yoast's daughter, Sheryl, in the 2000 Disney film Remember the Titans. In 2004, she played Kate Hudson's title character's adolescent niece in Raising Helen. In 2005, she was the title character's rival in a skating contest in Ice Princess. In the same year she played the main (human) role in the film Racing Stripes as budding jockey Channing Walsh. She subsequently starred in 2006's Bring It On: All or Nothing as a cheerleader and had a supporting role as Adelaide Bourbon in the 2007 independent film Shanghai Kiss.

In June 2007, she signed with the William Morris Agency, after previously being represented by the United Talent Agency. Forbes estimated that she earned $2 million in 2007.

In 2008, Panettiere appeared in the drama Fireflies in the Garden as a younger version of Emily Watson's character, Jane Lawrence. In September 2008, she appeared in a satirical video, a mock-PSA (public service announcement) on funnyordie.com titled "Hayden Panettiere PSA: Your Vote, Your Choice". In October, Panettiere appeared in another satirical PSA video on funnyordie.com titled "Vote for McCain: He's just like George Bush, except older and with a worse temper".

In July 2009, Panettiere starred in the teen comedy I Love You, Beth Cooper. In September 2010, she was signed to star as Amanda Knox in the controversial Amanda Knox: Murder on Trial in Italy. Panettiere also provided the voice of Kate in 2010's Alpha and Omega.

In April 2011, Panettiere appeared in the Scream sequel, Scream 4, playing Kirby Reed, a role for which she received acclaim and was considered to be a highlight of the film, which received mixed reviews. The same year she replaced Anne Hathaway as the voice of Red for the animated sequel Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil. In 2012, The Forger, in which she played the role of Amber, was released direct to DVD (both this and Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil were made in 2009).

In April 2015, Panettiere joined the cast of Custody, alongside Viola Davis (both actresses appeared in 2006's The Architect).

Video games

Panettiere voiced Kairi in Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts II. While she was replaced by Alyson Stoner in Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories and Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, she reprised her role in Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep and also voiced Xion in Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance.

She voiced and modeled the character of Sam in Until Dawn, which was released on PlayStation 4 on August 25, 2015.

Singing

Panettiere was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1999 for A Bug's Life. In 2004, she recorded a song entitled "My Hero Is You" with a video for the Disney Channel film she starred in, Tiger Cruise, and "Someone Like You," a duet with Watt White for another film, The Dust Factory (also with an accompanying video). The next year she recorded a song entitled "I Fly" for the Disney film Ice Princess in which she also co-starred. She recorded a song for the Hollywood Records compilation Girl Next (2006) and another song entitled "Go to Girl" for Girl Next 2 (2007). Also in 2007, she recorded a cover for "Cruella De Vil" for DisneyMania 5, "Try" for the Bridge to Terabithia soundtrack and a ballad called "I Still Believe" for Cinderella III: A Twist in Time.

Panettiere's first single, "Wake Up Call", was digitally released on August 5, 2008. The clothing brand Candie's announced that it was premiering an ad campaign for the single in late July. Similarly, Candie's would also provide additional promotion for the single with a television advertisement and a music video. Sebastian Stan, who portrayed the brother of Panettiere's character in The Architect, played her boyfriend in the video.

She has recorded several songs for Nashville, which were released as singles and included on the show's soundtrack albums. In 2013, Panettiere recorded a version of "The Fabric of My Life" for a Cotton Incorporated campaign.

Modeling

In late 2006, Neutrogena made Panettiere the cover girl for their new worldwide ad campaign; following in the footsteps of actresses Kristin Kreuk, Josie Bissett, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Mandy Moore, Mischa Barton, Gabrielle Union and Jennifer Freeman. In September 2007, Panettiere appeared in a Heroes-themed Got Milk? ad for which the photographs were shot by Annie Leibovitz. In February 2008, Kohl's announced that Panettiere would be their next Candie's spokesperson. From 2007 to 2008, Panettiere designed limited edition hand bags for Dooney & Bourke and modeled their bags in magazine ads

In 2009, Panettiere was one of the celebrities featured in the coffee table book Room 23, produced by Diana Jenkins and photographed by Deborah Anderson.

Personal life

Panettiere dated her Heroes co-star Milo Ventimiglia from December 2007 to February 2009. She met former heavyweight world champion boxer Wladimir Klitschko in 2009 at the book launch party for mutual acquaintance Diana Jenkins' Room 23 (both appeared in the book), and they soon began dating. Panettiere was ringside for Klitschko's knockout victory over Samuel Peter on September 11, 2010. In May 2011, she announced that they had broken up amicably after two years together. Both cited the long-distance nature of their relationship as the reason, and said they would remain close friends. Panettiere confirmed reports that she and Klitschko had resumed their romantic relationship in an April 2013 interview. In October 2013, she announced her engagement to Klitschko. In December 2014, Panettiere gave birth to their daughter, Kaya Evdokia Klitschko.

Panettiere followed a vegetarian diet while she starred in Heroes but has since added chicken and fish to her diet, stating that she "didn't respond well" to a vegetarian diet, and she had "low energy".

In 2015, she stated that following the birth of her daughter she experienced post-partum depression. In her September 28 appearance on Live with Kelly and Michael, she said that it's "scary and needs to be talked about". In October, Panettiere voluntarily checked into a facility for treatment, causing her to miss filming for a few episodes of Nashville. She returned to treatment in May 2016.

Activism

In 2007, Panettiere became an official supporter of Ronald McDonald House Charities and is a member of their celebrity board, called the Friends of RMHC.

On October 31, 2007, Panettiere joined with The Whaleman Foundation to try to disrupt the annual dolphin hunt in Taiji, Wakayama, Japan. She was involved in a confrontation between Japanese fishermen and five other surfers of the group from Australia and the United States (including former Home and Away star Isabel Lucas). The confrontation lasted more than 10 minutes before the surfers were forced to return to the beach, after which they left the country. Parts of the confrontation can be seen on the award-winning Sundance Film Festival documentary film The Cove. The fishermen consider the condemnation as an attack on their culture.

In November 2007, she was awarded the "Compassion in Action Award" from the animal rights group PETA for her efforts to stop the dolphin hunt in Japan.

On January 28, 2008, Panettiere handed a letter of protest to the Norwegian ambassador in the U.S. arguing that Norway should stop its hunt for whales. She also delivered a letter to the Japanese ambassador calling for the end of Japan's hunting of whales. At a 2007 Greenpeace event in Anchorage, Alaska, Panettiere defended aboriginal whaling, saying that there is a difference between commercial whaling and the whaling practiced by aboriginal tribes in the U.S.

In May 2008, Panettiere was involved in an eBay auction to benefit Save the Whales Again, a campaign of The Whaleman Foundation. The auction included tickets to a fundraising dinner hosted at the Hollywood restaurant Beso, owned by Eva Longoria, and a whale watching tour, with Panettiere, off the coast of Santa Barbara. The same month, during an interview with Teen Vogue, she explained how her fame gives her a platform for her activism: "The show [Heroes] put me in a place to speak for things that I'm passionate about."

In September 2008, Panettiere launched her own line of calfskin leather bags for the company Dooney & Bourke. In October, she delved into the presidential election, releasing a public service announcement through the website Funny or Die. In this video, Panettiere mocked Republican candidate John McCain for his age and temper. She subsequently made clear her intention to vote for Barack Obama, and urged other young people to vote.

Panettiere also appeared in a public service announcement with DC Shadow Senator Paul Strauss endorsing voting rights for the District of Columbia. She is also a teen ambassador for the Candie's Foundation, whose mission is to prevent teen pregnancy. On May 6, 2009, she participated in a town hall meeting in New York City alongside Bristol Palin and Major League Baseball pitcher Matt Garza on the issue of teen pregnancy.

On December 6, 2013, Panettiere and her fianc Wladimir Klitschko visited the Euromaidan-protests in Kiev (the capital of Ukraine). Wladimir's brother Vitali was one of the leading figures of these protests. She and her fianc addressed the crowds.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1998	The Object of My Affection	Mermaid
1998	A Bug's Life	Dot	Voice role
1999	Message in a Bottle	Girl on Sinking Boat
2000	Dinosaur	Suri	Voice role
2000	Remember the Titans	Sheryl Yoast
2001	Joe Somebody	Natalie Scheffer
2002	The Affair of the Necklace	Young Jeanne de Saint-Rmy de Valois
2004	The Dust Factory	Melanie Lewis
2004	Raising Helen	Audrey Davis
2005	Racing Stripes	Channing Walsh
2005	Ice Princess	Gennifer "Gen" Harwood
2006	Bring It On: All or Nothing	Britney Allen
2006	The Architect	Christina Waters
2006	Mr. Gibb	Allyson 'Ally' Palmer	Released on DVD as The Good Student
2007	Shanghai Kiss	Adelaide Bourbon
2007	Diary of a New Girl	Hannah Rochelle	Voice role
2008	Fireflies in the Garden	Young Jane Lawrence	Released in North America in 2011
2008	Scooby-Doo! and the Goblin King	Fairy Princess Willow	Voice role
2009	I Love You, Beth Cooper	Beth Cooper
2009	The Cove	Herself
2010	Alpha and Omega	Kate	Voice role
2011	Scream 4	Kirby Reed
2011	Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil	Red Riding Hood	Voice role
2012	The Forger	Amber Felter	Filmed in 2009 as Carmel-by-the-Sea
2016	Custody	Ally Fisher	Premiered on Lifetime in 2017

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1994-1997	One Life to Live	Sarah Roberts	25 episodes
1996	Aliens in the Family	Young Girl	Episode: "Too Good to Be True"
1996	How Do You Spell God?	Megan Blackwood	Movie
1997	Unhappily Ever After	Little Girl	Episode: "Little Ice Cream Shop of Horrors"
1998	A Will of Their Own		Miniseries
1998-2000	Guiding Light	Lizzie Spaulding	41 episodes
1999	Too Rich: The Secret Life of Doris Duke	Young Doris Duke	Miniseries
1999	Touched by an Angel	Diana	Episode: "Godspeed"
1999	If You Believe	Young Susan Stone / Alice Stone	Lifetime original movie
2000	Between the Lions	Girl with black pigtails and blue eyes	Voice role (uncredited)
2001	Law & Order: Special Victims Unit	Ashley Black	Episode: "Abuse"
2002	Ally McBeal	Maddie Harrington	Main role (12 episodes in season 5)
2003	Normal	Patty Ann Applewood	HBO original movie
2003-2005	Malcolm in the Middle	Jessica	4 episodes (4.13, 6.4, 7.5,6)
2004	Fillmore!	Yumi (voice)	Episode: "Code Name: Electric Haircut"
2004	Tiger Cruise	Maddie Dolan	Disney Channel original movie
2005	Law & Order: Special Victims Unit	Angela Agnelli	Episode: "Hooked"
2005	Lies My Mother Told Me	Haylei Sims	Lifetime original movie
2006	Commander in Chief	Stacy	Episode: "Wind Beneath My Wing"
2006	Skater Boys	Kassidy Parker No.2	Episode: "Band of Gold"
2006-2010	Heroes	Claire Bennet	Main role (74 episodes)
2006-2012	Punk'd	Herself / guest host	4 episodes (7.2, 8.1, 9.3)
2007	Robot Chicken	Cheetara / Ramona / Seuss Sister	Episode: "Endless Breadsticks"
2010	American Dad!	Ashley (voice)	Episode: "Stan's Food Restaurant"
2011	Amanda Knox: Murder on Trial in Italy	Amanda Knox	Lifetime original movie
2012-present	Nashville	Juliette Barnes	Main role
2013	Nashville On The Record	Herself	Special
2016	Chopped Junior	Herself / guest judge	Episode: "Cuteness Overload"
2016	Lip Sync Battle	Herself	Episode: "Hayden Panettiere vs. Eva Longoria"

Video games

Year	Title	Voice role
1998	A Bug's Life	Dot
2002	The Mark of Kri	Tati
2002	Kingdom Hearts	Kairi
2006	Kingdom Hearts II	Kairi
2010	Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep	Kairi
2012	Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance	Xion
2013	Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 Remix	Kairi (archive footage)
2014	Kingdom Hearts HD 2.5 Remix	Kairi (archive footage)
2015	Until Dawn	Sam
2017	Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue	Xion (archive footage)

Music video appearances

Year	Title	Artist	Role
2010	"I'd Rather Be with You"	Joshua Radin	Joshua's girlfriend (UK version)
2013	"1994"	Jason Aldean	Herself

Discography

Singles

Year	Single	Peak chart positions				Album
		US Country	US Country Airplay	US	US Pop
2008	"Wake Up Call"	"?	"?	125	97	Falling Down
2012	"Telescope"	36	33	"?	"?	The Music of Nashville: Season 1 Volume 1
2013	"Fame"	"?	"?	"?	"?	Digital download only
2013	"Hypnotizing"	"?	"?	"?	"?	The Music of Nashville: Season 1 Volume 2
2014	"Crazy" (traditional version)	"?	"?	"?	"?	Digital download only
2015	"Crazy" (duet version with Steven Tyler)	"?	"?	"?	"?	The Music of Nashville: Season 4, Volume 1
""?" denotes releases that did not chart

Other charted songs

Year	Single	Peak chart positions		Album
		US Country	US
2012	"Love Like Mine"	43	"?	The Music of Nashville: Season 1 Volume 1
	"Undermine" (with Charles Esten)A	35	116
	"Wrong Song" (with Connie Britton)	39	"?
	"For Your Glory"	46	"?	Music From Nashville - Season One: The Complete Collection
2013	"Boys and Buses"	44	"?
	"I'm a Girl"	43	"?
	"Consider Me"	37	"?	The Music of Nashville: Season 1 Volume 2
	"Nothing in This World Will Ever Break My Heart Again"	41	"?
2014	"Don't Put Dirt on My Grave Just Yet"	34	"?	The Music of Nashville: Season 2, Volume 2
	"He Ain't Gonna Change" (with Connie Britton)	50	"?
""?" denotes releases that did not chart

• ^ADid not enter the Hot 100 but charted on Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles

Music videos

Year	Video	Director
2004	"My Hero is You"
	"Someone Like You"
2005	"I Fly"
2006	"I Still Believe"
2008	"Wake Up Call"	Chris Applebaum
2011	"I Can Do It Alone"
2012	"Telescope"	TK McKamy
2013	"Fame"
	"The Fabric of My Life"	Pam Thomas

Soundtrack appearances

Year	Song	Soundtrack / album
2004	"My Hero Is You"	Tiger Cruise
	"Someone Like You" (with Watt White)	The Dust Factory
2005	"I Fly"	Ice Princess Soundtrack
2006	"Your New Girlfriend"	Girl Next Vol.1
2007	"Home"	Shanghai Kiss
	"I Still Believe"	Cinderella III: A Twist in Time
	"Try"	Music from and Inspired By Bridge to Terabithia
	"Cruella de Vil"	DisneyMania 5
	"Go to Girl"	Girl Next Vol.2
2011	"I Can Do It Alone"	Hoodwinked Too! (Hood vs. Evil) [Original Motion Picture Soundtrack]
	"Inseparable"
2012	"Undermine" (with Charles Esten)	The Music of Nashville: Season 1 Volume 1
	"Wrong Song" (with Connie Britton)
	"Love Like Mine"
	"Telescope"
	"Boys And Buses"	The Music of Nashville, Season One: The Complete Collection
	"Yellin' From The Rooftop"
	"For Your Glory"
2013	"We Are Water"	The Music of Nashville: Season 1 Volume 2
	"Hypnotizing"
	"Nothing in This World Will Ever Break My Heart Again"
	"Consider Me"
	"I'm A Girl"	The Music of Nashville, Season One: The Complete Collection
	"Used"
	"Hangin' On A Lie"
	"Trouble Is"	The Music of Nashville: Season 2, Volume 1
	"Can't Say No To You" (with Chris Carmack)
	"This Love Ain't Big Enough"	Hayden Panettiere As Juliette Barnes, Season 2
	"Dreams"
2014	"Everything I'll Ever Need" (with Jonathan Jackson)	The Music of Nashville: Season 2, Volume 2
	"Don't Put Dirt On My Grave Just Yet"
	"He Ain't Gonna Change" (with Connie Britton)
	"Tell That Devil"	Hayden Panettiere As Juliette Barnes, Season 2
	"Crazy" traditional version (performing as Patsy Cline)	Digital download only
	"Disappear"	The Music of Nashville: Season 3, Volume 1
	"Nothing In This World Will Ever Break My Heart Again (Live)"	Nashville: On The Record
	"White Christmas"	Christmas With Nashville
	"Celebrate Me Home" (with Clare Bowen, Connie Britton, Will Chase, Charles Esten, Jonathan Jackson, Sam Palladio, Aubrey Peeples, Chaley Rose and Lennon & Maisy)
2015	"One By One" (with Jonathan Jackson)	The Music of Nashville: Season 3, Volume 2
	"Hold You In My Arms" (with Jonathan Jackson)
	"Mississippi Flood"
	"Last Honest Man"	Digital download only
	"Crazy" (duet version with Steven Tyler of Aerosmith)	The Music of Nashville: Season 4, Volume 1
	"What If It's You"
	"Bad Reputation" (with Will Chase)	Digital download only
2016	"Hole In The World"	The Music of Nashville: Season 4, Volume 2
	"One Place Too Long"
	"Boomtown" (with Will Chase)
2017	"On My Way" (with Jonathan Jackson)	The Music of Nashville: Season 5, Volume 1
	"You're Mine" (with Connie Britton, Charles Esten, Lennon & Maisy, Clare Bowen, Sam Palladio, Jonathan Jackson & Chris Carmack)	The Music of Nashville: Season 5, Volume 2

Compilation albums

Title	Album details
Hayden Panettiere As Juliette Barnes, Season 1	Released: May 13, 2014 Label: Big Machine Records Format: digital download
Hayden Panettiere As Juliette Barnes, Season 2	Released: May 23, 2014 Label: Big Machine Records Format: digital download

Awards and nominations

Year	Association	Category	Work	Result
1998	Young Artist Awards	Best Performance in a Voice Over in a Feature or TV - Best Young Actress	A Bug's Life
1999		Best Performance in a TV Movie or Pilot - Young Actress Age Ten or Under	If You Believe
2000	YoungStar Awards	Best Young Actress/Performance in a Daytime TV Program	Guiding Light
		Best Performance in a Voice-Over Talent	Dinosaur
	Young Artist Awards	Best Performance in a Feature Film - Supporting Young Actress	Remember the Titans
2001		Best Performance in a Feature Film - Leading Young Actress	Joe Somebody
2004		Best Performance in a TV Movie, Miniseries or Special - Leading Young Actress	Tiger Cruise
2006		Best Performance in a TV Series (Comedy or Drama) - Lead Actress	Heroes
2007	Saturn Awards	Best Supporting Actress on Television
	Teen Choice Awards	Choice TV Actress: Drama
		Choice TV: Breakout
	Vail Film Festival	Rising Star Award	Hayden Panettiere
	Newport Beach Film Festival	Feature Film Award for Acting	Shanghai Kiss
2008	Genesis Awards	Top Honor	Hayden Panettiere
	Teen Choice Awards	Choice TV Actress: Action Adventure	Heroes
	Saturn Awards	Best Supporting Actress on Television
2009
2010
2012	Satellite Awards	Best Actress - Television Series Drama	Nashville
	Golden Globe Awards	Best Supporting Actress - Series, Miniseries or Television Film
2013
	Teen Choice Awards	Choice TV Actress: Drama
2014	People's Choice Awards	Favorite Dramatic TV Actress
2015	Teen Choice Awards	Choice TV Actress: Drama
2016	Critics' Choice Television Awards	Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series