Hayden Panettiere, voice of Kairi and star of Until Dawn, dies at 36

Hayden Panettiere has died at the age of 36, her family confirmed in a released statement on August 17, 2026. She was best known in gaming for portraying Samantha "Sam" Giddings in Supermassive Games' Until Dawn and for voicing Kairi in the Kingdom Hearts series.

Panettiere began her career at a very young age and quickly became one of the most recognizable young stars. She worked across film, television and video games during her career.

In the gaming community she was widely associated with Supermassive Games' horror title Until Dawn, where she played Samantha "Sam" Giddings. The article noted that many gaming fans will remember her in that role and described Sam as a favourite character among players.

Panettiere provided the voice of Kairi across multiple Kingdom Hearts games, a role the piece described as one of the most important characters in the franchise. The article said her appearances in the series made her familiar to gamers worldwide.

Her early voice work included contributions to A Bug's Life and an appearance in the video game The Mark of Kri. On screen her credits included roles in Remember the Titans and TV series such as Heroes and Nashville, and she also appeared in the Scream film franchise.

No official cause of death has been disclosed. The article was written by Mahaksh Chauhan, who is described in the piece as a passionate gaming journalist.