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Neutrogena, the popular cosmetics and skin care brand, has issued a statement following the death of Hayden Panettiere, who served as a spokesperson and brand ambassador for the company for nearly a decade during the height
of her career. Panettiere’s death ignited widespread backlash against Neutrogena across social media due to comments the actor made about the company wanting to fire her because she had spoken up about her battle with postpartum depression.
“We are deeply saddened by Hayden Panettiere’s passing,” Neutrogena said in a post on Instagram. “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 statement continued: “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 alleged in her 2026 memoir, “This Is Me: A Reckoning,” and in several interviews promoting the book that Neutrogena tried to end their longterm partnership because she spoke publicly about the postpartum depression she endured after the birth of her child, Kaya. Panettiere explained on the “On Purpose” podcast that Neutrogena said discussing such a matter publicly violated their “morals clause.”
“Of all the things, too, that they would fire me over, this was the last thing I thought they would fire me over,” Panettiere said. “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.”
Panettiere’s death inspired calls on social media for a boycott against Neutrogena. The death is currently under investigation, with the DEA recently joining the probe. Police have said there were “not any signs of foul play or suspicious circumstances.”
