Hayden Panettiere often played athletes on screen, and sometimes she did stunts by herself. The actress revealed the sports she did while growing up that prepared her to play a superhero, cheerleader, and ice skater. She passed away on Aug. 16 at 36 years old, and one of her stuntwomen posted about her time with the star.
Hayden Panettiere Loved Gymnastics as Much as Acting
GettyOne of Panettiere’s early roles was Sheryl Yoast in “Remember the Titans.” The character already had strong opinions about football and wasn’t afraid to voice them around coaches. The 10-year-old actress admitted that she didn’t know anything about football while filming the movie. But sports became a part of her life away from the cameras.
The actress went from horseback riding in “Racing Stripes” to ice skating for “Ice Princess.” Live About’s interview with her dove into her interest in physical roles.
“It sounded like something new and exciting and fun,” she said. “I’m very much an athlete. I’m a big jock and I love sports, and so, to be able to put another sport underneath my belt, and to learn something new, was amazing.”
Panettiere learned how to do scratch spins and spur spins on the ice. She needed a stunt double for triples.
Her favorite sport was gymnastics, making her perfect for her cheerleader roles in “Heroes” and “Bring It On: All Or Nothing.” She also grew up playing hockey on ponds in the winter with her brother Jansen.
“If I wasn’t an actress, I probably would have been a gymnast,” she claimed. “I swam for years, I played volleyball, I played softball and baseball. That was great.”
Panettiere Learned From Her Stunt Doubles
The actress was good at learning new tricks, but she couldn’t do them all. She answered whether she does her own stunts in her action scenes on “Heroes” with Seveteen.
“I do,” she said. “I have the same stunt double that I had way back in the day on ‘Ally McBeal.’ Her name is Nancy [Thurston], and she is really cool. She has taught me a lot.”
Thurston has a long list of impressive credits. She also doubled for Britney Murphy, Sarah Michelle Gellar, and Holly Marie Combs, who played Piper, on “Charmed.”
Panettiere said she never did a scary stunt on “Heroes” to be safe. Another stuntwoman, Jessica Smith-Rolph, made a Facebook post about Panettiere after the news of her death was released.
“I’m absolutely shook right now… I just got the text of Hayden’s passing and I didn’t want to believe it. I have no words right now, I’m heartbroken to see this news. I was Hayden’s photo double / Stunt Double and Stand in for several years on multiple projects and this is just absolutely devastating news. Rest easy beautiful girl,” read the post.
Panettiere later became a scream queen in horror films, like “Scream 4,” which also uses her physical skills. It’s hard to imagine what her career would’ve looked like with her love for sports.
