An interview Hayden Panettiere gave just months before her death has resurfaced, drawing renewed attention to an experience she said happened when she was 18 and involved a woman she had come to trust as a protector.
Speaking on the May 11 episode of On Purpose with Jay Shetty, Panettiere alleged that the woman brought her aboard a yacht, where she found herself in a situation involving an unidentified “very famous man.” Panettiere said she was “basically told to perform sexual acts.”
The Heroes and Nashville actress discussed the same experience in her memoir, This Is Me: A Reckoning, which was published May 19.
Panettiere died Sunday at age 36. According to 911 dispatcher audio, emergency responders were called to an Airbnb apartment in Greenville, South Carolina, following a report involving an “unidentified female” experiencing “cardiac arrest” and a suspected “overdose.”
Panettiere Said She Trusted the Woman Who Took Her Aboard the Yacht
During her conversation with Jay Shetty, Panettiere said she was 18 at the time of the alleged incident and still navigating life as a young actress who had been working in the entertainment industry since childhood.
She described the unidentified woman involved as someone she “had grown to trust and see as a protector.”
According to Panettiere, nothing beforehand suggested what was about to happen.
“There was no hints of anything like that happening, so it took me by surprise,” she said.
Panettiere recalled being taken below deck and into what she described as a “very small room.” There, she said, she was placed on a bed beside an unidentified man who was undressed.
She said the man behaved “like this was just an average day for him.”
Panettiere refused to accept what was happening.
“I was like, ‘This is not happening,’” she recalled.
She said she managed to leave the room and attempted to find another place to hide aboard the yacht.
‘There Was No Jumping Off and Swimming Away’
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Panettiere described realizing that she had few options while still aboard the vessel.
“There was no jumping off and swimming away. And there was nobody who was going to be empathetic to my situation,” she said. “I realized that this was nothing new to them.”
While recounting the experience, Panettiere also focused on the emotional impact of being placed in that position by someone she believed she could trust.
For her, the alleged betrayal was particularly painful because of how difficult it had been to find people she felt safe relying on.
“When you really find somebody that you trust, you hold on to them for dear life, and you feel so lucky,” she said. “So to be betrayed like that is just an awful feeling.”
Panettiere did not publicly identify either the woman she said brought her onto the yacht or the man involved in the alleged encounter.
The Account Also Appeared in Her Memoir
Panettiere expanded on difficult periods of her life in This Is Me: A Reckoning, released on May 19, shortly after her appearance on Shetty’s podcast.
Her account of what allegedly happened aboard the yacht was among the experiences included in the memoir.
The interview has received renewed attention following news of the actress’s death on Sunday.
Panettiere was found unresponsive by a friend at an Airbnb apartment in Greenville, South Carolina.
According to 911 dispatcher audio, emergency responders were sent to the property following a call concerning an unidentified woman experiencing “cardiac arrest” and a suspected “overdose.”
The circumstances surrounding her death were still being reported as suspected at the time of the article.
Panettiere Had Previously Discussed Addiction Struggles
Years before her death, Panettiere had spoken publicly about her experiences with alcohol and drug addiction.
In a previous interview with People, she recalled being given what she called “happy pills” when she was 15 years old. She said they were intended to make her appear more “peppy” during red carpet appearances.
Her May interview with Shetty offered another deeply personal look at experiences from her years growing up in the entertainment industry.
Now, following her death at 36, her account of the alleged incident at age 18 — particularly the betrayal she said came from someone she regarded as a trusted protector — has resurfaced as one of the most troubling stories she shared publicly about her past.