As Hollywood and fans mourn the death of Hayden Panettiere, her Heroes onscreen dad is recalling the late actress’ talent and heart.
Jack Coleman, who starred as Claire’s (Panettiere) father Noah Bennett on the NBC superhero drama, remembered Panettiere as a “prodigious talent” and “extraordinary young woman” in a heartfelt statement after her death at age 36.
“I’m heartbroken. I couldn’t begin to put my thoughts into words until now, and they will be inadequate,” he began on Instagram. “I’ve loved Hayden since day one of the pilot of Heroes, 20 years ago, when she introduced herself by shouting ‘daddy’ and throwing her arms around me. From that day on, she called me daddio. She was Haydini, because she was a magician.”
Coleman continued, “She was a prodigious talent. During an early scene, a tear rolled down her cheek on the same line, take after take. I marveled at her technique. ‘It’s not technique,’ she corrected me. ‘I’m not a trained seal. I feel it and the tears just happen to come at that moment.’ She was 16.”
The actor took aim at the members of the press who “routinely asked obnoxious questions, mostly some version of ‘when are you going to go off the rails?’ Today, we’d recognize those questions for the misogynistic provocations they were.”
“She was hunted,” he recalled. “Everywhere she went, there were photographers with 300 millimeter lenses—the kind that can make even the most innocent activity look sinister. Once, when she came to our house, paparazzi hid in the bushes behind our yard and drove onto neighbors’ lawns. They were predatory. No one, especially a teenager, should be targeted that way.”
Coleman starred alongside Panettiere for the show’s four-season run from 2006 to 2010, during which she played a high school cheerleader who has regenerative powers. Unbeknownst to Claire, her father Noah works for a secret agency that wants to terminated people with special abilities.
“She brought joy to the set and a photographic memory,” Coleman continued. “Everyone was in awe of her ability to bring it every take. A tiny colossus who loved to laugh. We laughed a lot. That shining face, that megawatt smile, that wasn’t just for the camera. That was her. She glowed.
“Today I’m filled with sorrow and regret. And anger. But that’s for another time. Right now I want to remember an extraordinary young woman who was blessed and cursed. She was vulnerable. She felt everything. It made her a remarkable actor and susceptible to the heartache and thousand natural shocks that flesh is heir to.”
Coleman added, “I love you, Hayden. I’ll miss you. I’m so sorry you suffered. I’ll remember how happy you were on set and on the European press tour; how you championed Tess when she was being bullied; your commitment to animal welfare and the courage to put yourself in harm’s way to protect them. I only wish you had been given that same protection. Good night, sweet girl. And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.”
On Monday, Panettiere’s rep confirmed the actress’ death to Deadline, as police in Greenville, South Carolina initially announced that no foul play was suspected.
