Hayden Panettiere's Relationship with Brian Hickerson Kept Private Amid Career Concerns
Sources say actress Hayden Panettiere maintained a private romance with Brian Hickerson while promoting her memoir, and both were in Greenville when she died of a suspected overdose.
Sources close to Brian Hickerson told TMZ that the couple continued their relationship privately while Panettiere was promoting her memoir "This Is Me: A Reckoning" in the months before her death. According to the source, Panettiere's team advised her to keep the relationship out of the public eye, believing it could negatively affect book sales.
The source added that Panettiere remained in regular contact with Hickerson during the promotional tour and that reports of their breakup were inaccurate, describing them as "bad for business" in the context of her career. A separate source confirmed the couple had been dating consistently for years and that rumors of a split were spread to protect her professional image.
Both individuals were reportedly seen together at various gatherings in Los Angeles and South Carolina over the past year, and friends close to them allegedly found media reports of a breakup amusing because the couple remained together.
Panettiere was questioned about her relationship with Hickerson, who previously served jail time after pleading no contest to charges related to alleged violent incidents with her. She reportedly responded with laughter when asked about marriage.
On the day of her death, first responders were called to an Airbnb in Greenville, South Carolina, around 1:50 p.m. after a woman was found in cardiac arrest. She was pronounced dead at 2:32 p.m. Dispatch audio referenced a possible overdose, and Narcan, an opioid reversal drug, was found at the scene. Hickerson was in town at the time, though the purpose of his visit was not disclosed.