The Girl Who Was in All of Our Favorite Movies: Remembering Hayden Panettiere

For anyone who grew up in the late ’90s and 2000s, Hayden Panettiere wasn’t just another actress. Somehow, she was everywhere — and looking back, she was quietly part of so many of the movies and shows that made our childhoods memorable.

Panettiere died on August 16 at just 36 years old. While the circumstances surrounding her death are still under investigation, there’s so much more to remember about her than how her story ended.

She started acting before she could even remember it, appearing in commercials as a baby before growing into one of the most recognizable young actresses of her generation.

She was the voice of Dot in A Bug’s Life. She was Sheryl Yoast, the football-obsessed coach’s daughter in Remember the Titans. Then came Raising Helen, Racing Stripes, Ice Princess and Bring It On: All or Nothing — basically a lineup of movies that instantly feels like a trip back to the 2000s.

And then, of course, there was Heroes.

As Claire Bennet, the seemingly indestructible cheerleader, Panettiere became one of the faces of one of the biggest shows of the era. Later, she reinvented herself again as Juliette Barnes on Nashville, a role that earned her two Golden Globe nominations and showed a completely different side of her talent. She also became a favorite of horror fans as Kirby Reed in Scream 4, eventually returning to the role in Scream VI more than a decade later.