Hayden Panettiere: US actress and star of Heroes dies aged 36

Actress Hayden Panettiere has died at the age of 36, her representative told several US news outlets.

“It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden. She was an incredible light and a force of nature who brought immeasurable love and joy to all who knew her and to the millions who watched her onscreen,” her father, Skip Panettiere, said in a statement.

The details surrounding her death were not immediately available.

Panettiere was known for her breakout role in the hit TV series Heroes, and later went on to star in Nashville, along with films including Remember the Titans and Raising Helen.

Her father Skip Panettiere has asked for privacy “as our family takes time to process this unimaginable loss”, in a statement issued through her representative.

Beginning her career as a child actor, Panettiere was just four years old when she was cast on the popular US soap opera One Life to Live.

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