The American actress, who has died at the age of 36, shared a daughter with the former heavyweight boxing champion
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| Klitschko and Panettiere got engaged and welcomed a daughter before later splitting up |
Hayden Panettiere made a heartbreaking admission about the daughter she shared with former fiance Wladimir Klitschko in her final interview, which was published just weeks before her death.
The American actress, who began her career as a child star before landing roles in shows like Heroes and Nashville, has died at the age of 36. In a statement, her heartbroken father Skip paid tribute to her as an "incredible light and a force of nature" and said her death was an "unimaginable loss".
Panettiere was previously engaged to former world heavyweight boxing champion Klitschko, having met him at a book launch in 2009. After they began dating, they split up in 2011, before rekindling their relationship two years later.
In October 2013, they got engaged, with the actress giving birth to their daughter, Kaya, the following December. However, it was confirmed in 2018 that the couple had split again, but remained on amicable terms.
That same year, Panettiere made the "heartbreaking" decision to relinquish full custody of Kaya to Ukrainian boxing great Klitschko, due to her struggles with long-term post-partum depression and addiction.
In what proved to be her final interview with parenting outlet Momé, published just last month, the late actress addressed the situation again, saying she knew she needed to hand full custody to Klitschko in order to put her daughter first.
"It wasn’t a decision I made lightly, nor was it a decision I even wanted to make," said Panettiere. " I was going through a really challenging time in my life.
"I knew I needed to be able to put her first so that I could get the help I needed and be the mum she needed me to be.
"I love my daughter, and I’m so proud of the young woman she is becoming," she added. "I talk to her all the time, and I feel so connected to her. She’s like a mini-me."
It comes after she detailed being separated from Kaya in her memoir, titled This Is Me: A Reckoning and released earlier this year.
"Not being under the same roof with her every day has been the most gut-wrenching experience of my life, and it’s hard to describe the layers of emotion – including sadness, resentment, and anger – I’ve felt because of it," Panettiere wrote.
"I grieve that I’m not the mother I thought I’d be and definitely not the mother I want to be (trust me, no one should ever have to raise a child on FaceTime), and although I miss Kaya so much my heart aches, I know how blessed I am to be her mom.
"She is the greatest gift of my life, with all the best parts of her father and me."
Tragically, Panettiere's death comes three years after her younger brother Jansen also passed away at the age of just 28.
Jansen, who was also an actor, died in February 2023 due to aortic valve complications, related to enlarged heart syndrome.
- John Jones
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