Hayden Panettiere and the child stars whose relationships with their momagers became complicated

Hayden Panettiere's early autopsy report showed no trauma that caused her death at age 36.

Her death came months after she spoke publicly about being estranged from her mother and former manager Lesley Vogel.

The former Heroes actress died on Sunday at a home in Greenville, South Carolina, where she was staying temporarily. Authorities say the cause and manner of death are still being investigated.

In her May memoir This Is Me: A Reckoning, Panettiere described her complicated relationship with Vogel, who managed her career from when she was a baby.

HAYDEN PANETTIERE DEAD AT 36

In a Us Weekly interview, Panettiere said she and Vogel were not in contact.

"We don’t have a relationship now," she told the outlet in May. "That doesn’t mean I won’t leave the door open someday. It’s hard to say, but I chose to be brutally honest."

Hayden Panettiere spoke about her estrangement from her mother and former manager Lesley Vogel before her death at 36. (Getty Images)

Born in Palisades, New York, Panettiere was the daughter of former soap actress Vogel and New York City firefighter Alan "Skip" Panettiere.

She signed with Wilhelmina Models at eight months old and booked her first commercial at eleven months. She got her first recurring TV role on the soap One Life to Live when she was four.

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Vogel began managing Panettiere’s career when the actress was a baby. (WireImage)

Vogel acted as Panettiere’s manager, making business and money decisions for her daughter throughout childhood.

In her memoir, Panettiere reflected on growing up with Vogel running her career and how the blurred lines between mother and manager affected their relationship even after she became an adult.

Panettiere described Vogel as a controlling and complicated figure in her childhood, saying her mother could be volatile and withhold affection while managing her career.

In a May interview with The Independent, Panettiere said she was praised for acting very early and began to link professional praise with her mother’s love.

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"Getting that kind of praise so young made me feel empowered and happy," Panettiere said. "But it was also all wrapped up in pleasing my mom. Her opinions were the most important to me. I linked praise with love, so being praised felt like being loved."

Panettiere detailed their complicated relationship in her memoir and interviews. (Getty Images)

In her book, Panettiere also shared specific incidents showing the pressure she faced as her mother managed her career. She recalled losing a baby tooth at age eight, less than 24 hours before an important audition.

She wrote that both she and Vogel panicked, fearing the gap would stop her from getting the job. Vogel allegedly glued the tooth to her dental flipper, and Panettiere still landed the role.

During a May appearance on Jay Shetty’s On Purpose podcast, Panettiere explained how she felt about the dynamic of having her mother also act as manager.

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"Everything was business," she recalled. "I became the confidant, the assistant, the therapist, the shoulder to cry on, and everything but her child."

After years as a child actor, Panettiere rose to fame at 17 when she got the role of cheerleader Claire Bennet on NBC’s hit series Heroes, which premiered in 2006.

Panettiere fired Vogel while she was starring on Heroes. (Dean Handler/NBC/Everett Collection)

While speaking with Shetty, Panettiere said that at age 19 she ended her business relationship with Vogel because she wanted a more normal mother‑daughter relationship.

"I said to her, ‘I don’t want us to work together anymore. I just want you to be my mom,’" Panettiere remembered.

"I remember being hopeful," she continued. "But I didn’t expect her reaction: ‘You owe me.’ That was all she said, and she walked out."

Panettiere said she later thought about her mother’s comment and found it confusing.

"It was like a dark cloud over my head, asking ‘What does she mean I owe her?’ ‘What payment does she expect?’" Panettiere recalled. "It was disappointing to learn it was about money and that she didn’t want a simple mother‑daughter relationship."

"The fact she didn’t care to have a relationship with me was a tough pill to swallow," she added.

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Vogel previously disputed Panettiere’s account. (FilmMagic)

Although Panettiere said she wasn’t the only one supporting her family as a child actor, she noted Vogel set up a corporation around her work and used some childhood earnings for family costs, like car leases and phone bills. She called the dynamic a "role reversal" that made her feel very uncomfortable.

Panettiere’s parents split in 2008 and finalized their divorce in 2016. They also had a son, Jansen Panettiere, who died suddenly in 2023 at age 28 from heart complications.

Vogel has previously disputed Panettiere’s portrayal of their relationship. In May, before the book’s release, Vogel addressed her estrangement from her daughter.

"After 20 years of trauma, I took professional advice and chose no contact," she told Page Six at the time. "Many parents of entertainment children know the painful sight of watching self‑destructive paths. No parent hopes for this; we want our children to be their best and live peacefully and joyfully!"

Vogel also suggested that making their family conflict public was "partially to sell books."

Fox News Digital has reached out to Vogel for comment on her daughter’s death and Panettiere’s earlier statements about their relationship.

Panettiere was not the first former child star whose relationship with a parent became complicated when the mother also acted as manager. Here are other actresses who have spoken about strained family dynamics with their former momagers.

Jennette McCurdy accused her late mother Debra McCurdy of physical and emotional abuse. (Gregg DeGuire/FilmMagic)

Former iCarly star Jennette McCurdy has often spoken openly about her difficult relationship with her late mother and former manager Debra McCurdy. In her 2022 bestseller I’m Glad My Mom Died, Jennette wrote extensively about their dynamic, describing Debra as intensely controlling and abusive.

Jennette recalled that Debra pushed her into acting at age six to fulfill her own unfulfilled dreams, though the Nickelodeon star says she never wanted to be an actress.

"My mom always dreamed of being a famous actor, and she became obsessed with making me a star," McCurdy said in a 2021 People interview. "I felt my job was to keep the peace and make my mom happy."

In her memoir and past interviews, Jennette said Debra introduced her to calorie restriction at age 11, leading to lifelong eating disorders. Jennette also accused Debra of overly monitoring her, performing inappropriate physical exams, and continuing to shower her into her teenage years.

The now 34‑year‑old said Debra controlled every part of her personal and financial life until Debra died of cancer in 2013.

She said only after Debra’s death and years of therapy did she recognize the abuse. Jennette eventually left acting, saying it was an identity her mother had created for her.

Brooke Shields called her mother Teri Shields the "original momager." (Jack Mitchell)

Brooke Shields has never denied the complicated relationship she had with her late mother, Teri Shields, whom she described as the "original momager."

Teri managed Brooke’s career from her modeling debut at 11 months old into her twenties. Brooke has said she helped support the family as a child star and that Teri tightly controlled her schedules, sets, and interviews.

The actress and model also spoke about being sexualized and objectified as a minor, including playing a child sex worker in the controversial 1978 film Pretty Baby at 11 and starring in provocative Calvin Klein ads at 15.

Teri also struggled with alcoholism, which Brooke says further complicated their relationship, especially with her mother’s dual roles. In her late twenties, Brooke finally fired Teri as manager, calling it the hardest decision she ever made.

Brooke has described lasting trauma from growing up with an alcoholic mother, saying she learned early to watch Teri’s moods and behavior. Yet she resists being seen only as a victim, saying Teri fiercely loved and protected her despite their complicated bond.

Teri died in October 2012 after a long illness with dementia.

Drew Barrymore has opened up about her complicated relationship with her mother, Jaid Barrymore. (Getty Images)

Drew Barrymore has previously described having a complex relationship with her mother and former manager Jaid Barrymore.

After Drew became famous in the 1982 hit E.T. the Extra‑Terrestrial at age seven, her mother took her to Hollywood parties and nightclubs while she was still a child, creating a dynamic where Jaid acted more like a friend than a parent.

By age 13, Drew began struggling with drug and alcohol addictions. Jaid later admitted her to a psychiatric facility for 18 months. Drew was legally emancipated from her mother at 14 and began living on her own.

Despite their painful past, Barrymore says she and Jaid eventually reconciled and stay in contact. She acknowledges her mother’s failures but also believes Jaid loved her and was ill‑equipped to raise a child in the extraordinary circumstances of Drew’s early fame.

Leighton Meester sued her mother Constance Meester. (Reuters)

Leighton Meester’s relationship with her mother and former manager Constance Meester eventually turned into a bitter legal battle.

At age 11, Leighton started modeling after she and Constance moved from Florida to New York. She debuted as an actress at 13 in a 1999 Law & Order episode and got her breakthrough role in Gossip Girl in 2009 at age 20.

In 2011, at the height of her Gossip Girl fame, Leighton sued her mother, claiming some of the $7,500 she sent home each month for her younger brother’s care was instead spent on cosmetic procedures, Botox, plastic surgery, and hair extensions.

Constance countersued, saying Leighton promised to support her financially and owed $10,000 a month. A judge sided with Leighton in 2012, ruling there was no valid agreement requiring her to support her mother financially.

Mischa Barton also faced off against her mother in court. (Denise Truscello/WireImage)

Mischa Barton is another star who found herself facing her mother and former manager Nuala Barton in court.

Mischa began acting professionally at age eight, around the same time Nuala started managing her career. Nuala received a 10% management fee from Mischa’s earnings.

In 2003, Mischa rose to fame at 17 after landing the role of troubled teen Marissa Cooper on The O.C. However, her personal and professional relationship with her mother eventually fell apart.

Mischa sued her mother in 2015, describing Nuala as a "greedy stage mother." She alleged her mother took control of her finances, lied about her film pay, and kept the difference. She also accused Nuala of claiming co‑ownership of a $7.8 million Beverly Hills home bought with Mischa’s earnings.

Nuala denied the claims, with her representative calling the allegations "outrageous and patently false." Mischa ultimately moved to dismiss the lawsuit in 2016.

During a 2024 appearance on Alex Cooper’s Call Her Daddy podcast, Mischa explained why she decided to fire Nuala as her manager.

"It just wasn’t healthy," she said. "I’ve learned to prioritize my chosen family and the people who have truly been there for me. I don’t rely on any one family member anymore. I’ve learned that for my own happiness."

Ariel Winter was removed from her mother’s care at age 14. (Getty)

Ariel Winter had a turbulent relationship with her mother and former manager Chrisoula "Crystal" Workman and the two have remained estranged for years.

Winter previously said her mother "pushed" her into entertainment at age four and Workman managed her career. Workman also served as president and secretary of the family’s company Winter Sky Entertainment.

At age 11, Winter was cast in her breakout role as Alex Dunphy on Modern Family, which premiered in 2009. When she was 14 in 2012, Winter was removed from Workman’s care amid allegations of physical and emotional abuse, and her older sister was made her guardian.

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Workman also temporarily lost control of her daughter’s finances and career. A judge ordered her to step down from her roles at Winter Sky Entertainment.

Court filings also accused Workman of restricting Winter’s food and trying to sexualize her appearance. Workman has repeatedly denied all allegations.

Winter was legally emancipated and declared an adult at 17 in 2015. She has repeatedly said she and Workman remain estranged.

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During a 2025 interview with People magazine, Winter said her "entire childhood" was her "biggest source of trauma."

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"It’s a really deep, painful, sore part for me that’s much deeper and bigger than I’ve ever felt ready to talk about," she said.

Ashley Hume is an entertainment journalist for Fox News Digital and Fox Business who covers breaking news, celebrity culture, major industry events and the business of entertainment.

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