The plans Hayden Panettiere had to celebrate her birthday with her 11-year-old daughter Kaya

H ayden Panettiere had been making plans for what should have been a deeply meaningful birthday week with her 11-year-old daughter, Kaya , before the actress died suddenly at the age of 36.

Panettiere was due to turn 37 on August 21, just five days after her death on August 16. According to a source close to the actress, she had been particularly excited about spending the week around her birthday with Kaya and had planned to travel to Germany to see her daughter.

“She was planning on spending the week of her birthday visiting her daughter in Germany,” the source told Page Six. “She was so excited to see her and was telling everyone how much she was looking forward to spending time with her.”

The plans now offer a particularly poignant insight into where Panettiere's priorities were in the final days of her life. Her daughter had remained a central part of her world despite the physical distance between them and the difficult circumstances surrounding their family history.

Panettiere shared Kaya with former professional boxer Wladimir Klitschko . The couple began their relationship in 2009, became engaged in 2013 and welcomed Kaya in 2014. Their relationship eventually ended in 2018, the same year Kaya began living primarily with her father in Europe.

Panettiere had previously spoken candidly about the emotional pain surrounding the custody arrangement. In 2022, she explained that giving Klitschko full custody while she worked on her health was among the most difficult experiences of her life.

More recently, she had pushed back against the idea that she had simply walked away from her daughter. In an interview earlier this year, Panettiere emphasized how much Kaya continued to mean to her and how painful the public perception of their situation had been.

Kaya remained at the center of Panettiere's life

The actress's hairstylist and close friend Erick Orellana also recalled how frequently Panettiere spoke about Kaya .

“I last saw her a few months ago,” Orellana said. “She was talking about how she wanted to take a vacation, and that she wanted to go and see her daughter. Her daughter was always her absolute priority. She loved her so much.”

Orellana , who worked with Panettiere for three years, said photographs and stories about Kaya were a regular part of their conversations.

“Her daughter was the absolute light of her life,” he told us. “She lit up when she spoke about her. Everything she did revolved around her.”

That description is consistent with comments Panettiere made publicly about their relationship. Despite living apart, she maintained contact with Kaya and continued to describe their connection as extremely important to her.

Panettiere's sudden death has therefore made the planned birthday visit particularly heartbreaking. Rather than marking her 37th birthday alongside her daughter, the family is now dealing with her loss.

Authorities in South Carolina have said there were no initial signs of foul play or suspicious circumstances, while the cause and manner of death remain under investigation. An autopsy reportedly found no signs of trauma.

Panettiere's father, Skip Panettiere , announced her death in a statement that remembered his daughter as “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 is survived by Kaya and her parents. Her final birthday plans, which had been centered on spending precious time with her daughter, now form one of the most poignant details to emerge following her death.