Hayden Panettiere shared that her unplanned four-year acting break proved to be advantageous to her wellbeing.

The Nashville star, 35 — who previously opened up about her battles with alcohol and drug addition — said she ‘desperately’ needed the time off.

‘I had taken four years off. Didn’t know or plan to, but that’s just the way it panned out,’ Panettiere told Us Weekly while discussing her upcoming film, A Breed Apart.

‘And I desperately needed it,’ the actress — who previously sparked fears over ‘slurred speech’ and her tumultuous relationship with ex Brian Hickerson — added.

‘I feel much more solid and grounded in this world, the crazy world that we live in,’ Hayden, who made her acting comeback in 2023, went on. 

The star then explained that the new version of herself is always ‘evolving and changing.’

Hayden Panettiere, 35, shared that her unplanned four-year acting break proved to be advantageous to her wellbeing; pictured in 2022 in Los Angeles

‘It’s healthy to continue to keep evolving as a person. Which I always try to do to keep reinventing ourselves and learning more things about ourselves and our wants and needs and dislikes and all the above.’

‘But I’ve never been this version of me, I’ve never been as OK with being who I am without feeling the need to apologize for anything. I feel like I’ve finally earned the right to an opinion.’

Read More Troubled star Hayden Panettiere launches comeback after sparking fears over ‘slurred speech’

She also thanked her reliable support system for encouraging her return to acting and helping her stay optimistic about the future. 

Speaking about her new horror-comedy film, A Breed Apart, she said, ‘The biggest thing that drew me to this character was the action part of it. It’s fun. You get to be physical. I get to use my athleticism.’

‘And also working with cameras and at the same time, and it’s just like this perfect dance that has to be created. It adds a whole other element to what we do.’

Following her time on the show Nashville, which came to an end in 2018, Panettiere took a break from being in the spotlight. 

In the following years, she publicly discussed her struggles with alcohol and drug addiction, which led to her daughter Kaya, nine, living in Ukraine with her former partner, boxer Wladimir Klitschko, 49. 

The Nashville star — who previously opened up about her battles with alcohol and drug addition — said she ‘desperately’ needed the time off; seen in Instagram snap in April

‘I had taken four years off. Didn’t know or plan to, but that’s just the way it panned out,’ Panettiere told Us Weekly while discussing her upcoming film A Breed Apart

‘I feel much more solid and grounded in this world, the crazy world that we live in,’ she went on. The star then explained that the new version of herself is always ‘evolving and changing’

‘I’ve never been this version of me, I’ve never been as OK with being who I am without feeling the need to apologize for anything. I feel like I’ve finally earned the right to an opinion’; seen 2024

She also faced the grief of losing her brother Jansen to an enlarged heart in 2023.

Panettiere made her return to acting in 2023 with Scream VI, once again playing Kirby Reed.

A Breed Apart will be released in theaters and on streaming services on Friday, May 16th.

During an interview with Women’s Health in 2023, the actress explained what had caused her to begin her sobriety journey in 2021.

‘I struggled with sleep deprivation. Sleep is mᴀssive. It affects your motor skills, your ability to think, and your overall health.’

She added, ‘My body was like, “enough.” I hit 30. My face was swollen. I had jaundice. My eyes were yellow. I had to go to a liver specialist.

‘I was holding on to weight that wasn’t normally there. My hair was thin and coming out in clumps.’

Last year, Hayden sparked concern for her health after ‘slurring words’ during interviews.

Speaking about her new horror-comedy film, A Breed Apart, set to be released May 16th, she said, ‘The biggest thing that drew me to this character was the action part of it. It’s fun. You get to be physical’; seen in a still from the trailer

She took a hiatus following her time on Nashville, which came to an end in 2018 (seen in a still). Panettiere made her return to acting in 2023 with Scream VI, once again playing Kirby Reed

The actress has previously battled with opioid addiction as well as substance abuse – but has been in recovery since 2021.

In September 2024, she opened up to People about the death of her younger brother Jansen following his shock pᴀssing at age 28 due to an undiagnosed heart condition in February 2023 called cardiomegaly.

A ‘concerning’ video of the interview soon went viral – with the star also discussing her daughter Kaya.

Social media users speculated that Hayden was ‘not sober’ due to ‘slurred speech’ and looking exhausted.

Not long afterwards, Hayden broke her silence over the concern of her People interview on her own Instagram page.

‘It’s unfathomable that I’m even in this position, but I feel forced to address it in a space where I won’t be criticized for how fast or slow I speak,’ she explained to her followers.

Panettiere added that she hadn’t slept for two days before the shoot due to her pet having an emergency and needing surgery.

Before making her return, she publicly discussed her struggles with alcohol and drug addiction, which led to her daughter Kaya, nine, living in Ukraine with her former partner Wladimir Klitschko, 49; seen with Kaya

She and the boxer had an on-off again relationship from 2009 until 2018; the former pair seen in 2015 in Berlin, Germany

‘It was an 8-hour shoot followed by an on-camera interview that was supposed to last for 1 hour. The interview started well, and for the record, its beginning is not included in the version People Magazine posted. I was exhausted.

‘My rep stopped the interview early as it became obvious that I was fading – especially as the subject matter became heavier.’

Hayden asked to re-do the interview but was told ‘that it wasn’t necessary’ and added, ‘The magazine does not grant approval for images or video interviews before they run. We see the interview when it goes live.’

The actress expressed that, ‘Grief looks different on everyone. Whether or not I am on medication is none of anyone’s business and is between me and my doctor.’

She also added, ‘The real issue here is the toxicity of social media, and a news cycle that is driven by click bait.

‘Mental health is so important, and I hope those reading this now understand that what you say hiding behind a computer screen can have a detrimental impact on someone.’

Hayden concluded with, ‘For those of you who have come to my defense amidst this chaos I am so grateful. Like I’ve said before, I am a work in progress. We all are.’

However, she sparked worry once again as she sat down for a separate interview on Today.

During the interview, she promoted her film Amber Alert – as well as talking about her late brother and mental health.

She also faced the grief of losing her brother Jansen to an enlarged heart in 2023; they are seen in 2019

In regards to her mental health following her brother’s death, Hayden said, ‘I thought that people would have empathy, was going to be the only thing that was there, but I had no idea how my body, my mind, was going to react to grief.

‘It’s wild what stress and grief and all these hormones and running through your body can do…’

She added, ‘I mean, make you faint. My mother, when she got stressed – she’s gonna kill me for saying this – she used to get knots on her head. It comes in all different forms, so nobody should be embarrᴀssed by it or judged for it.’

When asked if she has ‘processed’ her brother’s death, Panettiere admitted, ‘I don’t know that I fully have. I think it’s something that transforms over time.’