World

Panettiere's body released to family after autopsy

By AAP Newswire

Aug 20, 2026

Hayden Panettiere's body has been released to her family following an autopsy.

Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content

The 36-year-old US actor died on Sunday at an apartment in South Carolina and after an autopsy was completed, her remains were released and transferred to a mortuary, it has been confirmed.

A statement from Greenville County Coroner's Office read: "An autopsy was completed today. At autopsy no signs of trauma were discovered that would have contributed to the death.

"The cause and manner of death remain pending further investigation and the completion of additional studies. This investigation remains active and ongoing. No further details are available for release at this time."

The statement confirmed first responders had found Panettiere suffering a cardiac arrest when they arrived on Sunday afternoon.

It added: "EMS personnel initiated advanced cardiac life support measures; however, resuscitation efforts were unsuccessful, and the individual was pronounced deceased at 2:32pm."

TMZ obtained dispatch audio of the call to emergency services, which appears to pick up officials discussing an "overdose".

The short recording included one officer saying: "Responding. Overdose. CPR is in progress."

After receiving the emergency call, paramedics rushed to the apartment and tried to resuscitate Panettiere but after an hour the Ice Princess star was pronounced dead.