The Tragic Death Of Hayden Panettiere's Brother, Jansen

The younger brother of actor Hayden Panettiere has died. The news was first reported by TMZ on February 20, with sources telling the outlet that Jansen Panettiere was found dead in New York at the age of 28. An exact cause of death has not yet been revealed though authorities do not suspect foul play, according to the report. 

Jansen, who was five years younger than his sister, had dabbled in acting throughout much of his life. According to his IMDb page, Jansen has starred in more than a dozen shows over the years, including an episode of "The Walking Dead" that aired in 2019. Jansen also has four credits to his name for upcoming projects, including a project called "Horse" starring Henry Ian Cusick that is listed as being in pre-production. 

In addition to his acting career, Jansen referred to himself as an "artist" in his Instagram bio. On his professional website, his bio reads, "One of a kind. Artist. Creator. Actor. Human Being." Jansen has been fairly active on social media and uploaded his last Instagram post shortly before his tragic death. 

Jansen Panettiere shared an Instagram photo of his older sister Hayden Panettiere cutting his hair back in January 2023. "Not the first haircut she's tried to give me," he captioned the black-and-white snap. In the pic, Jansen was sitting in a chair with some of his hair up in a bun while his sister stood behind him, presumably wielding a pair of scissors. Hayden had not released any kind of statement about her brother's death at the time of this writing.

In his last Instagram post on February 17, Jansen also shared a photo of some unique artwork. He captioned the post with his middle name, "Rane" and added a blue heart emoji. The photo appeared to be his artistic impression of his girlfriend, Catherine Michie, who was standing next to the creation. The word "love" was painted on the canvas in a few places along with a caduceus — a symbol affiliated with medicine and healing. According to her Instagram account, Michie works as a registered nurse. The post has since become a place for people to offer their condolences, many taking to the comments section leaving well wishes after hearing about Jansen's death.