Hayden Panettiere’s close friend has revealed the poignant last text she sent him before her shocking death at the age of 36.
Panettiere, who would have turned 37 on August 21, was found “unresponsive” by officers and paramedics in an apartment building in Greenville, South Carolina, on Sunday. pronounced dead at the scene after a suspected overdose.
Police and the local coroner’s office are investigating the death, but say the “preliminary investigation has revealed no signs of foul play or suspicious circumstances.”
The star and her real estate agent boyfriend Brian Hickerson, who was previously jailed for abusing her, are said to have flown away from Los Angeles to South Carolina, where he is from, the day before she died.
In the wake of her death, her close friend, musician Clayton Johnson, 37, paid tribute to the actress and revealed her hopes for “world peace” in the last text message she ever sent him.
He shared a video of the pair singing together and wrote: “Sweet Hayden.
Hayden Panettiere’s close friend has revealed the poignant last text she sent him weeks before her shocking death at the age of 36
Her close friend, musician Clayton Johnson, 37, paid tribute to the actress and revealed her hopes for ‘world peace’ in the last text message she ever sent him
‘I tried to find the right words last night, but there aren’t really any.
“More than anything, I hope you are now at peace and reunited with Jansen.
“It’s been a few weeks since our last phone call, but the last thing you ever sent me was, ‘Honestly, people think it’s a joke to ask for world peace, but I would be.’
‘That was you in a nutshell. I am grateful that I met you, and I will always be grateful for the memories. Fly high, Hayden.”
The Daily Mail has contacted Johnson for further comment.
Narcan was found in the apartment where Panettiere died, it was reported Monday.
The nasal spray, which is used to reverse the effects of an opioid overdose, was found on a mattress in a loft apartment where Panettiere was staying when she died Sunday. TMZ reports this.
It is still unclear whether Narcan was used to revive Panettiere, although 911 audio obtained earlier on Monday showed the actress had gone into cardiac arrest after a suspected overdose.
On Monday, the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office said Panettiere’s autopsy was completed and no signs of trauma were found on the star’s body.
Johnson said Panettiere wrote him, “It’s been a few weeks since our last phone call, but the last thing you ever texted me was, ‘Honestly, people think it’s a joke to ask for world peace, but I would be.’
There will now be further investigations to determine her cause of death, with Chief Deputy Coroner Shelton England telling the Daily Mail it was too early to discuss the drug overdose theory.
In audio of a 911 call at 1:51 p.m. Sunday, a female dispatcher described the actress as being in “cardiac arrest.”
Moments later, a male dispatcher was heard saying that Panettiere had suffered a suspected overdose at his home.
The actress was pronounced dead at the scene at 2:32 p.m., just over 40 minutes after the first 911 call was made.
The Greenville County Coroner’s Office has completed the star’s autopsy, with the coroner telling the Daily Mail that “no signs of trauma were discovered that would have contributed to death.”
Panettiere was “found unconscious in the home where she was temporarily staying,” the coroner said in a statement.
Investigators will conduct additional investigations as they continue to investigate the case, the coroner’s statement said.
Panettiere leaves behind an 11-year-old daughter with ex, Wladimir Klitschko
The actress had a history of suffer from drug addictionstarting when she was only 15 years old. At the time, she claimed she started taking “happiness pills” in an attempt to make her appear “peppy” during interviews.
Her addiction worsened as she battled postpartum depression after the birth of her daughter Kaya in 2014.
But Panettiere has been sober in recent years, she said in a 2022 interview, noting that “it’s a daily struggle.”
“It’s an everyday choice, and I’m constantly watching myself,” Panettiere told People at the time. “But I’m so grateful to be part of this world again, and I’ll never take it for granted again.”
Panettiere also shared what she almost looked like died during childbirthand later gave full custody of Kaya to her former fiancé, Ukrainian boxer Wladimir Klitschko.
Kaya, now 11, lives in Europe with her father.
Speaking about the decision, Panettiere said she “desperately” needed help at the time and emphasized that Kaya doesn’t feel “abandoned” while appearing on a recent episode of the series. On purpose with Jay Shetty podcast.
“The idea that anyone would think I would just give my child away and be okay with it is heartbreaking. It couldn’t be further from the truth,” she said.
“I was struggling with mental health and anxiety and postpartum and having to work my way through it, and feeling like I was completely losing myself,” she added.
The actress opened up about how she struggled with the decision to give Klitschko full custody.
“It wasn’t a decision I made lightly, and it wasn’t a decision I even wanted to make,” she said.
“I was going through a very challenging time in my life…I knew I had to be able to put her first so I could get the help I needed and be the mother she needed.”
After her daughter’s birth in 2014, Panettiere recalled bleeding before undergoing seven blood transfusions and surgery to repair blood vessels that had begun to fail.
She said, “I closed my eyes and prayed that my daughter would be okay. I was really ready to go when it was my time. That Kaya was safe and healthy was all that mattered.”
Days later, however, she recalled feeling “nothing” when she looked at her daughter and developed postpartum depression. The actress then turned to drinking.
She said: ‘I turned to wine, which eventually led to an alcohol addiction. That’s how I got through every day.’
Although she received treatment, Panettiere felt that the “cause” of her drinking, depression, was not being addressed.
‘I wish more people knew what it was at the time. Maybe I wouldn’t have waited so long to get help,” she said.
Panettiere is remembered for her role as Claire Bennet on the hit NBC series Heroes
She played Juliette Barnes on the ABC show Nashville and released several of her own songs
Six years after giving up custody, Panettiere spoke about her current relationship with her daughter.
She said, “I love my daughter, and I am so proud of the young woman she is becoming. I talk to her all the time and I feel so connected to her. She’s like a mini me.’
The actress went on to say that she “could have put her first no matter how I felt or what I went through” and that she hoped Kaya would one day “understand my story and why I couldn’t be with her all the time.”
She then called herself “resilient” and a “work in progress,” but that she was “doing the work… and doing my best.”
In May, Panettiere released her memoir titled This Is Me: A Reckoning, in which she also described being separated from her only child.
“Not being under the same roof with her every day has been the most heartbreaking experience of my life, and it’s hard to describe the layers of emotions — including sadness, resentment and anger — I’ve felt as a result,” she wrote.
“I’m sad that I’m not the mom I thought I was and certainly not the mom I want to be (trust me, no one should ever have to raise a child on FaceTime), and while I miss Kaya so much that my heart aches, I know how blessed I am to be her mom.
“She is the greatest gift of my life, with the best parts of her father and me.”
