Hayden Panettiere was put into bed with an ‘undressed’ ‘very famous’ man on a boat at 18
Hayden Panettiere is recalling a traumatizing moment from her days as a young actress.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – MARCH 06: Hayden Panettiere attends the world premiere of Paramount’s “Scream VI” at AMC Lincoln Square Theater on March 06, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images)
Panettiere was on the “On Purpose with Jay Shetty” podcast Monday, sharing details from her new memoir, “This Is Me: A Reckoning,” when she was asked about being led into a room on a boat and expected to perform sexual acts when she was still a teenager.
“The fact that I was 18, even though I’d lived such a huge life and I thought I was oh so mature at 18 scientifically, your frontal lobes don’t develop until we’re what, 25, 26?” she said. “So even though I felt like I could make healthy decisions, safe decisions, I wasn’t capable of being fully aware of what was going on around me.”
The “Heroes” star said she realized she was “in danger” but there was nothing she could do to leave because “I was quite literally out to sea.”
NEW YORK, NY – JANUARY 05: Hayden Panettiere attends Build Presents Charles Esten & Hayden Panettiere Discussing “Nashville” at AOL HQ on January 5, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)
According to Panettiere, the person who led her into the situation was someone she had trusted, saying she saw them “as a protector and somebody who had my back.”
She recalled being brought downstairs to a small room with a bed and an “undressed” man in it.
“She physically put me in the bed next to this undressed man who was very famous,” Panettiere said, adding that he acted “like this was just an average day for him.”
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 10: Hayden Panettiere attends The Hollywood Reporter Emmy Party on September 10, 2022 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images)
Panettiere says she became “ferocious” and “was like, ‘This is not happening.’” She fled the room and tried to hide in another spot on the boat, but there was nowhere to really go to find safety.
“There was no jumping off and swimming away,” she said. “And there was nobody who was going to be empathetic to my situation. I realized that this was nothing new to them.”
Apart from the shock of the undressed man, Panettiere also felt hurt by the betrayal of the person who put her in that situation.
HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 13: Hayden Panettiere attends Los Angeles Premiere Of Netflix’s New Film “Blonde” at TCL Chinese Theatre on September 13, 2022 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images)
“When you really find somebody that you trust, you hold on to them for dear life and you feel so lucky,” she said. “So to be betrayed like that is just an awful feeling.”
“This is Me: A Reckoning” is available May 19.
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