Justin Chatwin says Hayden Panettiere was struggling on final film set

Justin Chatwin has recalled that Hayden Panettiere was "struggling" while filming her final movie.

The actor has reflected on starring alongside Hayden in the 2026 film Sleepwalker, which was her final released film before her death on Sunday.

Speaking to People in a new interview, Justin admitted that Hayden "seemed different" from when he first met her on the set of her hit show Heroes in the mid-2000s.

"Hayden seemed different when I met her this time than when I met her in the early years," he said.

The 43-year-old recalled feeling that the former child star was "lonely" during filming.

"I could tell she was struggling, and I was like, 'I don't think it's this movie,'" he remembered. "There's a handful of women that I've worked with that I really liked, and I really loved working with her, but I also know that she was really lonely."

In the psychological thriller film, released in January, Hayden played a mother mourning her daughter after she died in a car accident, while Justin portrayed her abusive husband.

Elsewhere in the interview, Justin suggested that the film's subject matter may have affected the Bring It On: All or Nothing actress.

"We hit it off great, and it was an awesome shoot, but it was about domestic abuse, and it was subject matter that may have hit close to home, because she did mention it," he stated. "She opened up to me about a lot of things."

Justin also recalled Hayden opening up to him about her struggles with addiction while they were working together.

Hayden died aged 36 on 16 August in Greenville, South Carolina. Police responded to a report of an unresponsive female and, after medical assistance was administered, she was pronounced dead at the scene.

The actress was best known for her roles as cheerleader Claire Bennet in the NBC superhero series Heroes and country pop star Juliette Barnes in the musical drama Nashville.