Viola Davis led a wave of tributes to Hayden Panettiere, who passed away on Sunday (Aug. 16) at the age of 36.
Following the news that Panettiere was found unresponsive in her South Carolina home by a friend, the entertainment industry and those she worked with in it shared their grief. In a post shared on Instagram, Viola Davis, who starred in the 2016 courtroom drama Custody with the late actress, said that she loved working with her alongside her husband, Julius Tennon.
"What an amazing talent you were....so gifted. Julius and I loved working with you....an old, wise soul with such a deep heart," Davis wrote on Instagram. "I wish the world had more time with you because I had a burning curiosity about who you were becoming. I saw this beautiful Phoenix rising from the ashes. Your tests became your testimony, and your testimony became your legacy. You will be remembered. Rest well, Hayden. Sending healing prayers to your family, your daughter, and all who loved you. May they always speak your name..."
Her Scream VI co-star Melissa Barrera wrote, "Rest in peace sweet Hayden," while David Arquette posted simply, "I love you Hayden." Selma Blair wrote, "I love you. Don't be gone. Please."
Bethany Joy Lenz, posting on Instagram, recalled working with a young Panettiere on the set of the CBS daytime soap opera, Guiding Light.
"Her intelligence was astonishing,” she wrote. “She understood scenes and nuance and human struggle like no child I'd ever seen on camera... Everything seemed to be turning around. She was coming BACK to life, wasn't she? It's too young and there's still so much more life. And her daughter…."
TV producer, director, and showrunner Bryan Fuller, who worked on Heroes, also paid tribute on Instagram.
“It was an honor and an inspiration to write Claire Bennet’s storyline in season one of HEROES,” wrote Fuller alongside a picture of Panettiere in her breakthrough role. “Hayden was more than an actress she was a muse. Wise beyond her years and already saddled with so much of a life, she left an indelible mark on me as a writer and a storyteller. Incredibly sad news.”
“It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden,” her father, Skip, said upon confirming the news of Hayden Panettiere’s passing. “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 cause of death has yet to be determined.
