Hayden Panettiere died from accidental overdose involving fentanyl, coroner says

News - South China Morning Post · Sep 22, 2026

US actress Hayden Panettiere died from an accidental overdose of several drugs, including fentanyl, a coroner in South Carolina said on Tuesday. Panettiere, 36, was found unresponsive in an apartment in Greenville, South Carolina, on August 16. Her on-and-off boyfriend Brian Hickerson and his brother Zach Hickerson were at the home. According to a statement from the Greenville County Coroner’s Office, a combination of fentanyl and its chemical by-product, as well as the anti-anxiety medication...