Hayden Panettiere, 35, gave an interview to People magazine, but the video quickly received a lot of criticism from online users.
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In the clip, fans said the actress was struggling to articulate her words when asked about the loss of her brother, Jansen Panettiere, who died early last year from a heart condition.
“Can someone take this video down? Hayden is clearly struggling here. This is exploitation. Remove this video immediately,” stated one user. “This video should be taken down,” added another. “This is so painful. You’re wrong to leave this up,” lamented a third.
To Page Six, a representative of Hayden addressed the backlash, stating that talking about her brother’s loss was an emotional moment for her. “It was a long and exhausting day for her. She wasn’t under [the] influence,” he said.
Previously, the actress had spoken about her struggle with addiction. “As I got older, drugs and alcohol became something I could barely live without,” she told Good Morning America, revealing that she was only 15 when she started taking pills.
“I felt like I was walking around blind. And I also don’t like to ask for help. I want to be that strong, stoic woman. But, I mean, when you see a carefree girl who’s been happy for years suddenly on the ground in a puddle of mess and alcohol, you need to know that something’s wrong.”
Photo and video: Instagram @haydenpanettiere. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.