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Hayden Panettiere’s final movie co-star Justin Chatwin has opened up about working with the actress in the months before her sudden death at 36.
Chatwin, who appeared alongside Panettiere in Sleepwalker, told PEOPLE that the pair had known each other from Panettiere’s Heroes days before reconnecting for the psychological thriller, which was filmed in winter 2025 and released in January.
In the movie, Panettiere played a woman dealing with the devastating loss of her daughter following a car accident.
Chatwin said the pair quickly developed a close connection while filming.
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“We hit it off great and it was an awesome shoot, but it was about domestic abuse and it was subject matter that may have hit close to home, because she did mention it.
"She opened up to me about a lot of things,” he said.
The actor said Panettiere appeared different when they reunited years after first meeting.
“Hayden seemed different when I met her this time than when I met her in the early years,” Chatwin recalled.
Chatwin, who said he has been sober for 15 years, explained that he recognized some of the difficulties Panettiere appeared to be experiencing.
“I’ve been sober for 15 years, so I know this world of addiction, and Hollywood - it takes, and it takes from youth.”
Panettiere had previously spoken publicly about her struggles with addiction and postpartum depression, which contributed to her decision to give full custody of her daughter Kaya to her former fiancé, Wladimir Klitschko, in 2018.
She later returned to acting with Scream VI in 2023, marking her first major onscreen appearance since Nashville ended in 2018.
Panettiere also released her memoir, This Is Me: A Reckoning, earlier this year, detailing her experiences with addiction and difficult events from her younger years, while also coming out as bisexual.
After Scream VI, the actress appeared in Sleepwalker and two further films.
Chatwin said he could tell Panettiere was experiencing difficulties while they were working together.
“I could tell she was struggling, and I was like, ‘I don’t think it’s this movie,’” he admitted.
“There’s a handful of women that I’ve worked with that I really liked, and I really loved working with her, but I also know that she was really lonely.”
According to Chatwin, Panettiere spoke openly about her time in rehab and her experiences with trauma during the early stages of production.
“I’m sure that everyone else is going to say ‘Oh, she’s amazing. She’s such a sweet person on set,’ because she was,” he added.
“But we’re trained to be actors, so we’re acting on set, you know?”
Chatwin described Panettiere as someone with a “beautiful heart”, saying he particularly valued the moments when she felt able to drop the public persona that came with being an actor.
“She is sweet. She had a beautiful heart,” he claimed.
“But we’re trained to be on, and I really liked spending time with her because she took that off, and she was authentic with me about her life and she opened up about her struggles with addiction.”
Reflecting on what may have contributed to her struggles, Chatwin said: “And who knows where it comes from? Does it come from Hollywood? Does it come from home? And a lot of times, it’s both.”
The film's writer and director Brandon Auman also paid tribute to Panettiere following her death.
“I’m completely gutted over Hayden’s passing,” Auman said.
“She was such a bright, open, numinous spirit. I keep thinking back to our time on set and how much she taught me.”
Auman also said Panettiere had been open about the difficulties she had experienced in recent years and how they influenced her performance.
“She was open and honest about the last few years of her life and how it related to her character,” he said.
“I’m keeping those conversations private, but I was struck by how complex and deeply introspective she was.”
He added: “She lived a dozen lives in one short beautiful life. I’ll miss her forever.”
Chatwin said Panettiere’s death had left him feeling both devastated and angry, particularly because he believes similar tragedies continue to happen.
“I felt sad this morning, but I feel angry,” he said.
“Because I want to point a finger at something for this, and it keeps happening.”
“She was delightful and super open and we had a great time together and I’m just saddened that another one got taken down,” he added.
“It’s not the first, you know, and it’s yearly, dude, and it’s like no one’s really addressing it."
