UPDATE: The DEA Is Now Investigating Hayden Panettiere's Death Too And The HOA Had Warned Her Hollywood Neighbors To Call 911 If Allegedly Abusive Ex-BF Brian Hickerson Ever Showed Up
Unfortunately this Hayden Panettiere plot keeps getting thicker by the day. Not only are the cops taking a closer look at her allegedly abusive ex-boyfriend Brian Hickerson & his brother, but now the DEA is reportedly joining the investigation too. Wild 48 hours for this tragedy already and doesn't seem like it's gonna slow down anytime soon. Sad stuff all around.
(SOURCE) - The Drug Enforcement Administration is joining the investigation into the death of actress Hayden Panettiere, according to sources familiar with the matter. The Greenville City Police Department in South Carolina is the lead investigative agency, but the DEA is also assisting.
According to the police report, it is unknown if Panettiere was using drugs or alcohol at the time of her death, although the officer added in the report that Brian Hickerson had shown them the bag of medication that Panettiere was taking.
(SOURCE) - Hayden Panettiere's neighbors were once warned to call 911 immediately if they spotted Brian Hickerson on their property. The HOA posted the warning at the end of August 2025 urging residents not to let Brian into the building and to call cops if he was seen. As we previously reported, Brian was arrested in 2020 after cops said he punched Hayden in the face. He later pleaded no contest to felony domestic violence charges and served jail time.
Fair to wonder if this could end up becoming like the Matthew Perry case if the DEA is already getting in the mix. And hard not to speculate further about what these new details from the police report could mean. It is supremely odd she passed away while her former abuser was asleep in the next room, and her body was discovered by his brother who she allegedly dated in 2019.
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Sure there were reports that she was struggling with sobriety in recent months but certainly some pretty weird smoke & potential fire there. Don't really think domestic abusers deserve the benefit of the doubt in any situation. Are coward scum sacks actually capable of changing their stripes? Generally not the case. But who knows.
Speaking of which, also had no idea all of these addictions might stem from a back injury Hayden got at 14 years old due to a zebra stunt gone wrong. Apparently getting thrown off that bastard gave her lifelong spinal trauma and constant pain when walking, especially recently. What a bad beat.
(SOURCE) - The Heroes star had been just 14 when she filmed Racing Stripes in South Africa, a film about a zebra that dreams of racing in the Kentucky Derby. She is understood to have only ridden a horse once or twice before filming, and spent six weeks learning to ride the animal like a jockey. Panettiere then performed all of the stunts for the movie, including racing at speeds beside Thoroughbreds, she said in an interview at the time. But at one point while filming she was then thrown from the zebra, suffering a concussion, severe whiplash and injuries to two vertebrae on her neck, the actress revealed in her memoir, 'This Is Me: A Reckoning', released earlier this year.
'Over 20 years later, these injuries still bother me,' she wrote in the memoir as she described how she would seek opioids whenever the injury flared back up. Another insider also noted that 'Hayden's addiction had many complicated elements and nobody should reduce it to one event. But the physical pain was real; she connected increased opioid use to her neck injury flaring up and it was something she was still dealing with decades after the accident. 'It was what really prompted her downward spiral into drugs and depression.'
Poor girl. Although inspiring to see that event didn't prevent her from continuing to love & protect animals. In fact as it turns out, the very last thing she ever filmed was this PETA campaign last month. Tearing up my marine park ticket as we speak. FUCK Seaworld brother.
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But can't close out this blog without one more piece of unfortunate piss for ya. Because the full statement from Hayden's former manager slash mother is certainly worth a read. Just not for any sentimental reasons. Even Gordon Gecko would think this comes off a bit cold.
Look at the statement on the left she issued to NBC News about her daughter’s death. She talks as if Hayden got herself into the business on her own — she was 11 months old when her mom started having her audition for acting gigs!!! You are responsible! Also look at the statement on the right, which she issued in May when Hayden’s memoir was published. She suggests her daughter has a severe personality disorder. Who speaks like this about their child?? She then talks about 20 years of trauma she’s had to endure — meaning she’s suggesting that her daughter, who would have been about 16 when that trauma supposedly began, should be held responsible as though she were an adult. Sixteen was right around the time Hayden began to become independent. And remember what Hayden said in the memoir: when she was 19 and finally told her mother she didn’t want her managing her anymore and just wanted her to be her mom, her mother responded, “You owe me.” Hayden also said her mother once told her, “You’re the reason why I’m missing my son growing up.” Imagine putting your daughter to work before she could even speak, managing her career throughout her childhood, pressuring her to audition and shaming her when she didn’t do well, benefiting financially from that career, blaming her for what it cost your family, and then speaking about the consequences as though you had nothing to do with them.
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With a loving understanding parent like that, who needs enemies right! Whew boy what a whirlpool of fuckery that entire Hollywood system continues to be for child stars. Hope Hayden has finally found her peace and also whatever real truth from Sunday afternoon comes to light. Maybe it was something salacious & malicious. Or maybe it really was just a tragic accident.
Either way, it's a sad loss of life that didn't need to happen, despite being destined 11 months into her existence. Would've been her 37th birthday on Friday too. Good reminder to be grateful for what you got while you're here my friends. Choose LOVE. And check your texts.
(SOURCE) - She was planning to visit her 11-year-old Kaya in Germany for a fun bash.It seems the trip had been in the works for a while and was planned to coincide with her birthday … and she was telling her inner circle how excited she was to see her little one … and celebrate another year around the sun.