Skincare, haircare and cosmetics brand Neutrogena has broken its silence in the wake of actress Hayden Panettiere's death, after fans of the late star began to boycott the brand in light of her past comments. She was found dead inside an Airbnb on August 16, with the investigation into her passing still ongoing.
Hayden served as a Neutrogena ambassador for 10 years, and the brand chose not to renew her contract in 2016 after she had spoken openly about her battle with postpartum depression.
Hayden revealed this bombshell in her 2026 memoir, This Is Me: A Reckoning and on the On Purpose with Jay Shetty podcast, and fans have now launched a boycott in her honor.
Neutrogena's response
© FilmMagic"We are deeply saddened by Hayden Panettiere's passing," read Neutrogena's social media statement, which they posted on Thursday.
"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."
© FilmMagic"Hayden's courage in sharing her challenges helped inspire important conversations and awareness," the statement continued.
"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."
Learn more about Hayden's journey below...
The brand added that they would share more details about the investment in the coming months.
"Out of respect for Hayden's family and loved ones, we did not want to speak out so soon following her passing. Everyone at Neutrogena extends their deepest condolences to Hayden's family and all who loved her," the statement concluded.
Hayden's abrupt dismissal
Back in 2015, Hayden spoke on Live with Kelly and Michael about how her Nashville character's struggles with postpartum depression closely mirrored her own life. "It's something, I think, that needs to be talked about, and women need to know that they're not alone, and that it does heal," she said at the time.
"There's a lot of people out there who think that it's not real, that it's not true, that it's something that's made up in their minds, and 'Oh, it's hormones,' and they kind of brush it off. It's something that's completely uncontrollable, and it's really painful, and it's really scary – and, you know, women need a lot of support."
© Disney General Entertainment ConHayden shared on the On Purpose with Jay Shetty podcast in May 2026 that Neutrogena opted not to renew her contract in 2016 in light of the comments, a move which she felt was a betrayal.
"Of all the things to, that they would fire me over, this was the last thing that I thought they would ever fire me over," she said. "It just came up, and I was just being honest. And never for a second did I think that anyone would care or that anyone would have a bad reaction to it. It was my truth."
© Twitter"So when I got that call that Neutrogena wanted to fire me over that, my representative at the time said, 'That's illegal, you can't do that,'" the mother of one continued.
"And even though she saved the day that year, I knew that that was gonna be it…I was not gonna be invited back the next year."
© YouTube/On Purpose"That being the thing that that was where they drew the line, and it was immoral, was shocking to me," she recalled. "And it made me realize and understand exactly what people thought of women who experience postpartum depression and how misunderstood it is, how much stigma there is around it."
The 36-year-old added that she did not receive a message from anyone at the company after her departure, despite working with them for a decade.
