Neutrogena has admitted it made actress Hayden Panettiere feel "unsupported" during a difficult period in her life, following her claims that the skincare company dropped her as an ambassador after she spoke publicly about postpartum depression.
The company issued a statement after the Nashville star's death at age 36 on Sunday, as fans called for a boycott of Neutrogena after Panettiere's previous allegations about her decade-long relationship with the brand resurfaced.
Neutrogena's Statement on the Controversy
Panettiere, who worked as a Neutrogena ambassador between 2005 and 2015, alleged before her death that the company decided not to renew her contract after she opened up about experiencing postpartum depression following the birth of her daughter Kaya.
In a statement shared on Instagram, Neutrogena said: "We are deeply saddened by Hayden Panettiere's passing. For more than a decade, Hayden was a valued member of our Neutrogena community. We are proud to have partnered with her and understand that we made her feel unsupported during a very difficult time. This is not what Neutrogena stands for or who we want to be."
The company added: "Hayden's courage in sharing her challenges helped inspire important conversations and awareness. We are making a significant investment to a long-standing community health partner to help give more women access to the support they need, including care for postpartum depression. We will share more details with this community when plans are in place."
Panettiere's Allegations About the Brand
Explaining the timing of the statement, Neutrogena continued: "Out of respect for Hayden's family and loved ones, we did not want to speak out so soon after her passing. Everyone at Neutrogena extends their deepest condolences to Hayden's family and all who loved her."
Panettiere had spoken about her experience with the company just months before her death, including during an appearance on Jay Shetty's On Purpose podcast in May. The actress claimed she had fallen foul of a "morality clause" after discussing postpartum depression publicly, although she said her representative challenged the company at the time.
"It just came up, and I was just being honest," the Heroes star said. "So when I got that call that Neutrogena wanted to fire me over that, and my representative at the time said, 'That's illegal. You can't do that.' And even though she saved the day that year, I knew that that was going to be it. I was not going to be invited back the next year."
Impact of the Allegations and Panettiere's Death
Panettiere said she had been particularly hurt by the way her relationship with the brand ended after working with the company for around a decade. She continued: "Of all the things, too, that they would fire me over, this was the last thing I thought they would fire me over. I'd worked with these people for 10 years, and I remember not hearing a word from anybody, not a 'great working with you for 10 years,' 'hope you're good; we wish you well.' And I remember that really breaking my heart."
The actress had first spoken publicly about postpartum depression in 2015, after welcoming Kaya with her former partner Wladimir Klitschko. During an appearance on Live with Kelly and Michael, Panettiere discussed how closely she could relate to the struggles experienced by her Nashville character Juliette Barnes. "There's a lot of misunderstanding, and I feel like there's a lot of people out there who think that it's not real," she said, describing the condition as "completely uncontrollable". She added: "It's really painful, and it's really scary, and women need a lot of support."
Her comments about Neutrogena began circulating widely again following news of her death, with angry fans flooding the company's social media pages and some declaring they would no longer buy its products. Panettiere died on August 16, just days before her 37th birthday, after being found unresponsive at a property in South Carolina. An investigation into her death remains ongoing and her cause of death has not yet been officially determined. Her death was confirmed by her father, Alan Panettiere, who described his daughter as an "incredible light and a force of nature". In a statement, he said: "It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden. She was an incredible light and a force of nature who brought immeasurable love and joy to all who knew her - and to the millions who watched her onscreen." Panettiere's death came three months after the publication of her memoir, This Is Me: A Reckoning, in which she also reflected on her experience with Neutrogena and her struggles away from the spotlight.
