The ‘Scream’ Cast Is Mourning Hayden Panettiere, “A Brave And Brilliant Soul”

Hayden Panettiere played horror fan Kirby Reed in the Scream movies. She injected the franchise with heart and like Hayden in real life, her character was a ferocious survivor. Her castmates are now mourning this incredible loss.

Hayden Panettiere in a red short-sleeve mini dress holding a silver clutch at the Scream 4 premiere arrivals. — Arriving solo at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre for the “Scream 4” premiere on April 11, 2011, Hayden Panettiere wore a red mini dress with a silver clutch. Photo by Frazer Harrison / Getty Images.

“Hayden should still be here,” Melissa Barrera told USA Today. “I feel so incredibly lucky that I got to grow up watching her and admiring her, and that I got to know her and share the screen with her.” Barrera played opposite Panettiere in “Scream VI,” the movie that resurrected Kirby Reed after fans spent years demanding her return.

Devyn Nekoda, Liana Liberato, Melissa Barrera, Jenna Ortega, and Courteney Cox at the Scream VI world premiere in New York City — Devyn Nekoda, Liana Liberato, Melissa Barrera, Jenna Ortega, and Courteney Cox gathered at AMC Lincoln Square Theater in New York City for the Scream VI world premiere in March 2023. Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris / Getty Images.

Neve Campbell remembered a co-star who “brought a magnetic energy to set,” calling her “a true talent which shows in the decades she worked in such a short life.” David Arquette wrote on Instagram that she was “such a brave and brilliant soul,” and Jenna Ortega called it “such a devastating loss.”

Hayden Panettiere in a black coat and dress posing in front of a Scream VI movie poster backdrop. — At AMC Lincoln Square Theater in New York City, Hayden Panettiere poses on the red carpet for the “Scream VI” world premiere on March 6, 2023, wearing an all-black ensemble. Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris / Getty Images.

Panettiere played Kirby in Wes Craven’s “Scream 4” in 2011 and again in 2023’s “Scream VI.” Even after the character appeared to die in the fourth film, the “Justice for Kirby” campaign kept her alive in the fandom until the franchise confirmed she’d survived and brought the character back.

Hayden Panettiere as Kirby Reed in Scream 4.

Emma Roberts, her “Scream 4” co-star and friend since that set, wrote, “Rest in peace my sweet friend. You are so loved and you will be forever missed.” Panettiere was found in cardiac arrest Sunday at a residence in Greenville, South Carolina, and pronounced dead at 36. Cause and manner of death are pending toxicology.