Hayden Panettiere spent nearly a decade of her life in a relationship with Wladimir Klitschko before her untimely death in August 2026.
The “Heroes” alum and the former professional boxer began dating in 2009 and broke up for good in 2018, four years after they welcomed their daughter, Kaya.
Keep scrolling to find out more about Panettiere and Klitschko’s romance and contentious custody battle.
When did Hayden and Wladimir meet?
Panettiere and Klitschko first met in 2008 at a party for a mutual friend.
During a 2013 appearance on the “Ellen DeGeneres Show,” the “Bring It On: All or Nothing” actress said that though she was in a relationship with Milo Ventimiglia, she made the first move on Klitschko by saying to him, “You’re huge,” to which he responded, “You’re tiny.”
When did Hayden and Wladimir start dating?
Shortly after Panettiere ended her relationship with Ventimiglia in 2009, the actress began dating Klitschko.
It’s unclear when they officially began dating.
After two years of dating, the couple split in May 2011.
”Even though we’ve decided splitting up is best for both of us, we have an amazing amount of love and respect for each other and remain very close friends,” Panettiere said in a statement at the time.
Klitschko added: “We had a great time together, but it’s not that easy to manage a relationship between two continents. I have a lot of respect for Hayden as a person and as a friend, and I believe we’ll keep our friendship even after the separation.”
However, the pair seemingly reconciled when they were spotted having tacos at a Florida taco shack and then packing on the PDA on the beach.
When did Hayden and Wladimir get engaged?
Though Panettiere had been seen wearing a ring on that finger for months, she and Klitschko didn’t confirm their engagement until October 2013.
During an appearance on “Live! With Kelly and Michael,” host Kelly Ripa asked about the massive rock that was on the actress’ finger.
“There’s a very large diamond ring on your ring finger. I’m not sure if you want to announce anything. Does that signify anything, is that a promise of something?” Ripa asked.
“It might be … I mean, I think it speaks for itself,” Panettiere replied.
“Are you engaged?” Ripa asked.
“I am,” the “Scream VI” star answered.
The couple then purchased a home together in Nashville, Tennessee, as they planned their wedding.
Who is Hayden and Wladimir’s daughter, Kaya?
In May 2014, Panettiere revealed that she was pregnant and expecting her first child with her fiancé.
Seven months later, the “Remember the Titans” star gave birth to their daughter, Kaya.
“We are over the moon and madly in love!” the happy parents said in a statement.
Panettiere was very candid about her “traumatic” birth, revealing that she went through 14 hours of labor, a three-hour surgery after the C-section and seven blood transfusions.
The actress suffered from severe postpartum depression and began drinking heavily to cope.
In her 2026 memoir, “This Is Me: A Reckoning,” Panettiere said she “felt nothing” when she first met her baby.
“She seemed like someone else’s baby, not mine. I had always heard that mothers feel an instant rush of love the moment they lay their eyes on their baby, but I felt nothing,” she penned in the book.
“Kaya was just there, and now I had to figure out how to bond with her. It felt like an insurmountable task, and I was only on the first day.”
When did Hayden and Wladimir break up for good?
In August 2018, Panettiere was photographed holding hands with Brian Hickerson at a restaurant in Los Angeles.
The actress’ mother, Lesley Vogel, confirmed her daughter and Klitschko had called it quits.
“There are a lot of changes going on in her life,” Vogel told RadarOnline at the time.
“She needs to take a little bit of a break and make some decisions on her own of what she wants to do. So I think she is in a very good place.”
However, Vogel said Panettiere and Klitschko were on good terms and were co-parenting their daughter, Kaya.
That same month, Panettiere put her Klitschko’s Nashville on the market and relocated to California.
Who gained custody of Kaya?
As Panettiere struggled with addiction, she made the “heartbreaking” decision to relinquish custody of Kaya to her ex in 2018.
The young child moved to Ukraine with Klitschko, which the “Ice Princess” star said was the “hardest thing I could do.”
“But the best thing for my daughter was to make sure she was OK, take care of myself and make sure I could be a good mom to her. And sometimes that means letting go,” she told People in 2022.
Panettiere said she and her ex-fiancé had been “working hand-in-hand” to co-parent Kaya at the time.
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