Hayden Panettiere is reflecting on a traumatic experience that left a profound impact on her. The former "Heroes" star recounted an incident where she was allegedly coerced into participating in sexual acts with an unnamed older celebrity while partying on a boat when she was just 18. "I thought I was oh so mature at 18," Hayden said in the May 11 episode of the "On Purpose With Jay Shetty" podcast. "Even though I felt like I could make healthy decisions, safe decisions, I wasn't fully aware of what was going on around me."
"It wasn't until I found myself in predicaments that I realized—my perspective completely shifted and I realized that I was in danger," she admitted. "But by the time I realized I was in danger, I was quite literally out to sea."
The 36-year-old actress recalled having a good time at the party before being pulled away to meet the celebrity, whose name she declined to share. "It took me by surprise," she said. "It was somebody led by somebody that I had grown to trust and see as a protector and somebody who had my back. To be walked down the stairs, it was presented as though it was a surprise."
Hayden described the room as very small and how she was physically put next to the undressed man who was very famous. "It was just like an average day for him and this is something that happens all the time," she explained, placing her hands on the back of her head.
Despite feeling scared in that moment, Hayden was prepared to defend herself. "I became ferocious," she recalled. "I was like, 'This is not happening.' But I had nowhere to hide. I bolted and I hid wherever I could think of on a boat."
"There was no jumping off and swimming away," she continued. "There was nobody who was going to be empathetic to my situation. This was nothing new to them."
One of the most devastating outcomes of this experience was the trust broken between her and the person who led her down the stairs, whom she deeply cared about. "It's disappointing when somebody lets you down like that," Hayden added. "I'd been let down so much before and then when you find somebody."
"When you really find somebody that you trust, you hold on to them for dear life and you feel so lucky," she continued. "So to be betrayed like that is just an awful feeling."
