Hayden Panettiere’s Ex-Boyfriend’s Brother, Zach, Breaks Down What Happened the Morning She Was Found Unconscious

The investigation into Hayden Panettiere’s sudden death has taken another turn, with federal authorities now involved and new details emerging about the final morning of the actress’ life. But one of the most revealing accounts so far has come from someone who says he was inside the South Carolina Airbnb when everything unfolded.

The “Nashville” actress died Sunday, August 16, at 36 after she was found unresponsive at a residence in Greenville, South Carolina. According to ABC News, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) joined the investigation on August 19, assisting the Greenville City Police Department, which remains the lead agency.

The development came shortly after Greenville police released a report detailing the scene where Hayden was found in cardiac arrest. An officer responding to an EMS call for an unresponsive person reported that Hayden was at the residence with her on-again, off-again boyfriend, Brian Hickerson, and his brother, Zach Hickerson.

The police report did not establish whether Hayden had been using drugs or alcohol at the time. It also noted that Brian showed officers a bag containing medication Hayden had been taking. Hayden’s representative later gave ABC News a brief statement as the investigation continued.

"There’s nothing to be shared at this time as the investigation is ongoing, but we are hopeful that justice will be served."

The coroner’s office has said Hayden’s official cause and manner of death remain pending further investigation and additional studies.

That distinction is important because the investigation has not officially established that an overdose caused Hayden’s death, even as reports surrounding Narcan and the DEA’s involvement have intensified questions. And now, a new account from Brian’s brother has provided considerably more detail about what happened inside the Airbnb.

The Investigation Has Taken a More Serious Turn

According to TMZ’s report, Zach said he woke up at his Airbnb that Sunday morning, got dressed, and went to church. He said he exchanged messages with Brian on his way there, and they planned to have lunch and play indoor golf after the service.

"When I left church, I called and texted both of them. When I didn’t reach Brian or Hayden, I just assumed maybe they fell back asleep, so I drove over and went to the Airbnb."

"When I got there, I knew the code to the building but not the door code to the Airbnb," he added. He continued, "I knocked loudly, which apparently woke Brian up from a nap they were both taking on the pull out couch bed in the living room."

The brothers then tried to wake Hayden so they could leave for lunch.

"When we went in and tried to wake Hayden up for lunch, we realized she was unconscious."

What happened next had not previously been publicly confirmed.

Hayden Panettiere is pictured riding in a vehicle in an undated photo. The image comes as Zach Hickerson recalls arriving at the Airbnb after Hayden and Brian failed to respond to his calls and texts, only to discover Hayden unconscious inside. | Source: Instagram/haydenpanettiere

Zach Reveals What Happened Inside the Airbnb

"I immediately called 911, and Brian gave her Narcan."

The brothers then attempted to keep her alive while waiting for emergency responders.

"We then jointly performed CPR while 911 was on speaker until Fire and EMS arrived."

Zach said they remained there as emergency personnel attempted to save Hayden.

"At that point we watched as they tried every measure possible to save her life."

His account provides a new detail about the Narcan found at the residence. Zach’s statement to the publication now answers that question from his perspective: he says Brian gave Hayden the medication.

The disclosure does not establish Hayden’s official cause of death, which remains pending as authorities continue their investigation.

Zach Has a Message for Those Speculating

Zach also addressed the speculation surrounding Hayden’s death, saying he wanted the public to wait for investigators to establish what happened.

"There are a lot of assumptions, speculations and accusations currently swirling. The truth will come out as the authorities complete and release additional details from the investigation."

"And that is important because the people who loved and adored Hayden deserve the truth."

He said he wanted to clarify his own involvement while allowing those closest to Hayden to grieve.

"At this time, I want to clarify my involvement in effort to keep the focus on the fact that we lost one of the most precious individuals on this earth and to allow those that cared about her to mourn without additional noise, chaos, and misinformation being created and propagated by the media as well as the public."

Zach also described the personal loss.

"I am beyond heartbroken and devastated by this tragic and traumatic loss. Hayden was one of my dearest and closest friends that I loved and cared about for the last 8 years."

Then came his direct appeal to the public.

"Out of respect for her loved ones, the speculation and sensationalism of her death needs to end until the facts can be released from the investigation."

Friday would have marked Hayden’s 37th birthday. Friday would have marked Hayden’s 37th birthday. Instead of celebrating with her, her former fiancé, Wladimir Klitschko, marked the day publicly with a tribute to the mother of his daughter.

Wladimir Marked Hayden’s 37th Birthday With a Heartbreaking Tribute

"Today is Hayden’s birthday. Instead of celebrating the way we had planned, today we celebrate her life, her spirit, and the love she brought into this world."

The message was particularly poignant because Wladimir and Hayden had remained connected through their daughter, Kaya, even after their romantic relationship ended.

Wladimir thanked Hayden’s fans, friends, and everyone who had reached out to him and the family following her death.

"At a time filled with so much sadness, your kindness has reminded me that there is still so much good in humanity,"

he added.

He then made a request that was less about Hayden’s career or public image and more about how people treat one another.

"If you’re reading this, I ask just one thing: even if only for a moment, think about LOVE. Reach out to a friend. Forgive someone. Be kind."

"Love is a superpower. Use it. Happy Birthday, Hayden. ❤️ You are loved, you are missed, and you will never be forgotten."

The words landed on a day that was supposed to have been filled with celebration. Because according to new details, Hayden had already made plans for exactly how she wanted to spend her birthday week.

Hayden Had Been Planning a Trip to See Kaya

Hayden’s daughter, Kaya, was not simply someone she hoped to see someday. She had reportedly been planning to visit her in Germany during the week of her 37th birthday.

According to Page Six, a source close to Hayden said the actress was particularly excited about the trip.

"She was planning on spending the week of her birthday visiting her daughter in Germany," the source said. "She was so excited to see her and was telling everyone how much she was looking forward to spending time with her."

The planned visit carried special significance given the complicated history surrounding Hayden’s relationship with her daughter. Hayden had also been planning a second reunion involving some of the people from one of the most important chapters of her career.

She Also Wanted a Nashville Reunion

She had reconnected in June with former Nashville co-star Sylvia Jefferies while promoting her memoir, This Is Me: A Reckoning. Sylvia, who played Juliette Barnes’ mother Jolene Barnes on the ABC drama, told Page Six that she and Hayden had discussed attending a performance by their former co-star Charles Esten in Greenville.

The plan was to attend Charles’s August 14 show at The Foundry and surprise him.

"We were going to try to surprise him because it was my birthday and then her birthday, of course, is on Friday. … But that didn’t happen," Sylvia said.

Sylvia recalled how Hayden reacted when she told her that Charles would be in town.

"She’s like, ‘Oh, mama, that sounds like so much fun. Let me see what I can do.’"

But the reunion never happened. Sylvia said it was devastating to think Hayden had been so close to the event.

"And just for [Esten] and I to know that she was right here. It just kind of tears you up. … It just was devastating."

The location makes the missed reunion even more striking. Hayden ultimately died at an Airbnb in Greenville, just a short distance from the venue where Charles was performing.

But the plans she made for that week were only part of a much bigger picture surrounding Hayden’s final months. Before her death, people close to her had also spoken about physical problems that had affected her mobility, while questions about her relationship with Brian remained largely hidden from public view.

Her Final Months Were Marked by Increasing Mobility Problems

In March, Hayden was photographed at LAX using crutches while accompanied by Brian. When asked about the crutches, Hayden explained in footage obtained by the Daily Mail that she was dealing with "some pinched nerves in my lower back."

She nevertheless tried to reassure people around her. She added that she was ‘on the mend,’ smiling and giving a thumbs-up before getting into a black SUV.

But according to people close to her, the problem was more serious than that brief public explanation suggested. Hayden’s hairdresser and friend Erick Orellana told Page Six that she had experienced severe pain earlier in the year.

"I know she suffered earlier this year with her back," Erick said. He described the pain as "really severe " and said it affected Hayden’s mobility.

"At one point, it was even hard for her to move her legs," Erick said.

A second source told Page Six that Hayden sometimes appeared tired and also experienced anxiety.

"Earlier this year, she did seem a little tired at times. But she was a night owl, and… she has a lot on her plate," the source said.

The insider also claimed Hayden

"suffered from anxiety at times"

and would

"occasionally take medication for that."

"And every so often that could impact her speech,"

the source said. Erick nevertheless believed Hayden appeared to be improving. But then came footage from May that has taken on a very different meaning following her death.

A May Video Showed Hayden Struggling to Walk

One of Hayden’s last videos was filmed in New York in May while she was promoting her memoir, This Is Me: A Reckoning. The footage, shared by Elder Ordonez on Instagram, showed Hayden walking while attending promotional appearances.

The video was posted after her death with a message expressing heartbreak over the footage and offering prayers for her family and loved ones. Viewers quickly focused on the way Hayden appeared to be walking.

One commenter wrote, "She looked a bit unsteady on her feet🥺♥️." Another said, "He was walking strangely at that moment, it seemed like something was wrong. 😢 Rip 🕊️" A third commenter wondered, "Her walk looked like she on some type of pain maybe, or it’s just me idk."

Others asked, "Anyone noticed how she walks?" One more person wrote, "Something was definitely wrong with her feet 😢" The Daily Mail also reported that May footage appeared to show Hayden struggling to walk while out in New York, with her right leg visibly giving her trouble.

Later that day, she reportedly relied on an assistant for support as she arrived at CBS Studios. She held the woman’s hand tightly as she walked inside, even as she smiled for those around her. Observers did not simply imagine the physical problems.

Hayden had spoken publicly about what she described as nerve damage in her lower back during a May interview with Women’s Health.

"I quite literally woke up and felt nothing but pins and needles from my waist down," she shared. "I wasn’t able to bend my toes or lift my foot at all. No one was able to give me a solid answer."

She said the uncertainty became frightening enough that she wondered whether she could remain that way permanently.

"It was like that for so long, that I was sitting there going, ‘Oh my gosh, am I gonna be paralyzed for the rest of my… life?’"

"It’s the scariest thing that’s ever happened to me physically, for sure."

None of those reported health problems has been established as a cause of Hayden’s death.

Another complicated part of her final months was not fully known to the public at the time. For years, Hayden and Brian’s relationship appeared to have gone through repeated breakups and reconciliations.

Hayden and Brian Were Apparently Still Together in Secret

But according to T M Z, the public version of their relationship was not the whole story. A source close to Brian claimed the couple had not broken up as many times as the public had been led to believe and were actually together while Hayden promoted her memoir in the months before her death.

They reportedly kept it quiet for her career. Hayden’s team allegedly believed Brian was "bad for business" while she was promoting This Is Me: A Reckoning. According to TMZ, the couple’s complicated history was seen as potentially damaging to book sales.

So, while Hayden and Brian were reportedly still romantically involved, they kept their relationship private. The secrecy apparently went beyond simply avoiding public appearances together.

TMZ reported that the pair remained in constant communication during Hayden’s promotional tour, while people in their inner circle reportedly knew they were still together. Hayden was also asked about her relationship with Brian during a May appearance and reportedly laughed at the idea of marrying him.

Their private relationship is particularly notable because Brian had previously served jail time after pleading no contest to two charges stemming from alleged violent incidents involving Hayden.

Brian Had a Legal Setback Just Days Before Hayden Died

Just three days before Hayden’s death, Brian suffered another legal setback. According to TMZ, a judge denied his request to have his past felony domestic violence convictions reduced to misdemeanors and his request to have the convictions expunged.

The ruling came on August 13, just days before Hayden died. Brian had pleaded no contest in April 2021 to two felony counts of injuring a spouse or girlfriend following a series of incidents involving Hayden between May 2019 and January 2020.

He had originally faced an eight-count criminal case. According to Page Six, Brian’s petition noted that he had fulfilled the conditions of his probation.

He had previously been sentenced to 45 days in county jail, four years of formal probation, 52 mandatory domestic violence classes and a five-year restraining order. He ultimately served 33 days after receiving credit for 12 days already spent in custody.

Behind the headlines surrounding Hayden Panettiere’s final months was a deeply personal family story involving Kaya, the daughter she shared with Wladimir.

Hayden spent years hearing other people tell the story of why her daughter, Kaya, lives thousands of miles away. But the now-late actress had increasingly filled in the missing pieces herself, and the reality she describes is far more complicated than simply "giving up" her child.

From the postpartum struggles that followed Kaya’s birth to the devastating custody papers Hayden later signed, motherhood did not unfold the way the "Nashville" star once imagined it would.

Today, however, her daughter is thriving and speaks an astonishing number of languages. She also shared an "incredible" bond with her mom and shares the same with her dad. And there is one painful misunderstanding that the actress especially hopes Kaya herself never takes away from her mother’s story.

Kaya’s Arrival Made Hayden Panettiere a Mom for the First Time

Kaya was born on December 9, 2014, in Hawaii. According to People’s report announcing Kaya’s birth, the baby weighed 7 lbs., 14 oz. and measured 20 inches long.

"We are over the moon and madly in love!"

The new parents said at the time. Hayden had largely kept quiet about her pregnancy, although her baby bump naturally became harder to hide. At the 2014 Emmys, she accidentally revealed that she and Wladimir were expecting a girl while talking about decorating and shopping for the baby.

Panettiere welcomed daughter Kaya in December 2014 after previously saying she felt empowered by the idea of raising a strong woman. Years later, she would reveal how drastically her experience of motherhood diverged from those early expectations.

"I’m thrilled that I am having a girl first because I feel like I know a lot about raising a strong woman,"

she told Hello! Magazine while discussing her pregnancy and then-impending motherhood.

"I feel very empowered myself and I think my daughter will, too,"

she added.

At the time, Hayden was engaged to Wladimir. The couple had announced their engagement in 2013, more than a year before Kaya arrived. The first days of motherhood brought all the expected exhaustion, and some surprises.

Hayden later joked that she finally got her first uninterrupted night of sleep because Wladimir’s mother had been eager to take care of the then-newborn overnight.

"Wlad’s mom was desperate to take the baby for a night,"

Hayden recalled in People’s first-photo story about the new family.

"She looks like she didn’t get much sleep, but I feel well-rested!"

She described becoming a parent as "such a surreal experience and so out of body," saying that she and Wladimir were simply getting to know the little person who had spent months growing inside her. Physically, however, recovery from childbirth was not easy.

"I’m limping around,"

Hayden said at the time, adding that she was still trying to understand what pregnancy had done to her body and which changes might be temporary or permanent. She even joked that she felt "like an 80-year-old woman trying to go down the stairs."

Kaya, meanwhile, was described by her mom as an easy and very sweet baby, albeit one with what Hayden called an "insatiable appetite." But behind those tender early moments, Hayden would eventually face a struggle she said she had not been prepared to recognize.

Kaya’s arrival initially brought Panettiere the excitement of first-time motherhood, but she later said she was unprepared for the postpartum depression that followed. She had spoken openly about how isolated and confused she felt during that period.

Years later, Hayden explained that she suffered from postpartum depression after Kaya’s birth. The actress said part of what made the experience so frightening was that she did not understand what postpartum depression was or realize she should be watching for it.

"I wish I knew about postpartum depression. I wish I knew to look out for it,"

she told E! News while reflecting on her experience in 2023. Hayden said she thought "there was something seriously wrong" with her and turned to alcohol in an attempt to make herself feel better.

She recalled thinking, "Fireball will fix this — duh!" before discovering that any relief was fleeting and ultimately made things worse. The isolation was another painful c