Hayden Panettiere’s ‘Heroes’ dad Jack Coleman slams ‘misogynistic and predatory’ press questions aimed at her as a teen star: ‘No one, especially a teenager, should be targeted that way’
Hayden Panettiere, best known for her role as Claire Bennet in Heroes, has been remembered by her former co-star Jack Coleman following her death at the age of 36. Coleman, who played her on-screen father Noah Bennet in the NBC superhero drama, shared an emotional tribute reflecting on their two decades of friendship and his concerns about the intense media attention she faced as a teenager.Alongside photographs from the Heroes set, Coleman recalled meeting Panettiere when she was just a young actor and described the bond they developed over the years. He also criticised the treatment she received from sections of the press and paparazzi, particularly as her fame grew during her teenage years.
Jack Coleman remembers ‘Haydini’
Reflecting on how their bond began, Coleman recalled, “I’ve loved Hayden since day one of the pilot of ‘Heroes,’ 20 years ago, when she introduced herself by shouting ‘daddy’ and throwing her arms around me. From that day on, she called me daddio. She was Haydini, because she was a magician.”
Jack Coleman slams ‘misogynistic provocations’ from the press
Coleman used his tribute to speak candidly about how he saw the industry treat his younger co-star, particularly the inappropriate questions she faced as a teenager in the spotlight. “By 17 she was #1 on IMDB Pro. She was routinely asked obnoxious questions, mostly some version of ‘when are you going to go off the rails?'” he recalled. “Today, we’d recognize those questions for the misogynistic provocations they were.“
‘She was hunted’: Coleman calls out paparazzi behaviour
Coleman didn’t hold back in describing what he saw as predatory press behaviour toward Panettiere. “She was hunted. Everywhere she went, there were photographers with 300 millimeter lenses — the kind that can make even the most innocent activity look sinister,” he wrote. “Once, when she came to our house, paparazzi hid in the bushes behind our yard and drove onto neighbors’ lawns. They were predatory. No one, especially a teenager, should be targeted that way.“Coleman closed his tribute with raw emotion: “Today I’m filled with sorrow and regret. And anger. But that’s for another time. Right now I want to remember an extraordinary young woman who was blessed and cursed. She was vulnerable. She felt everything. It made her a remarkable actor and susceptible to the heartache and thousand natural shocks that flesh is heir to.”
Co-stars and creator pay emotional tribute
Coleman and Panettiere played central characters on Heroes during its original four-season run on NBC from 2006 to 2010, with Coleman returning for the 2015 Reborn miniseries. Several of Panettiere’s Heroes co-stars have shared their own tributes since her passing. Sendhil Ramamurthy, who played Mohinder Suresh, recalled how she would stand up for mistreated background actors on set and made a point of knowing every crew member’s name.In an exclusive essay for Variety, ‘Heroes’ creator Tim Kring praised Panettiere as “singularly talented,” adding: “Hayden was a true team player, which was important for a show with a large ensemble cast. She was levelheaded beyond her years as a person, with an almost savant-like quality about her work. It wasn’t just that Hayden could learn lines with ease — it was her rare ability to find and explore the nuances of drama and humor and pathos in any scene she was in.“
About Hayden Panettiere and the ongoing investigation
Panettiere, best known for her roles in ‘Heroes’ and ‘Nashville’, was found unresponsive at a residence in Greenville, South Carolina, and pronounced dead after resuscitation efforts were unsuccessful. Authorities have said there were no signs of foul play or suspicious circumstances, and an autopsy found no signs of trauma contributing to her death. The Greenville County Coroner’s Office and local police have opened parallel investigations, with the cause and manner of death still pending further tests, including toxicology results. Panettiere began her career as a child actor before rising to fame in ‘Heroes’, and later starred in Nashville, Remember the Titans and the Bring It On franchise. She is survived by her daughter, Kaya.
