Before Abusive Relationship With Brian Hickerson, Hayden Panettiere’s Drug Addiction Destroyed Her Romance With a Boxing Legend Who Could’ve Been Her Endgame

Before Hayden Panettiere’s drama with Brian Hickerson made headlines, her love life was already a hot mess. Her whirlwind romance with boxing legend Wladimir Klitschko seemed like it could’ve been the fairy-tale ending, but addiction was crashing the party.

Hayden Panettiere as Kirby Reed in Scream 6 | image: Paramount Pictures

Despite their strong connection, Panettiere’s struggles with drug addiction were tearing them apart. What looked like a love story for the ages quickly turned into a cautionary tale of how fame, addiction, and love can collide in brutal ways.

From Fairy-Tale Romance to Heartbreak: Hayden Panettiere’s Struggles with Addiction and Love

Emma Watson lost out to Hayden Panettiere for the role of Claire Bennet in Heroes | Credit: NBC

Before Brian Hickerson’s drama hit the headlines, Hayden Panettiere’s life was already a legit mess. Substance abuse derailed her idealized relationship with boxing champion Klitschko. The couple first crossed paths in 2009—Panettiere joked about his size on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and he playfully shot back.

They were engaged in 2013 after an on-again, off-again romance, and by 2014 they were parents to a girl named Kaya. However, the engagement ended in 2018. They remained amicable as co-parents after the divorce, and Kaya continued to live mostly with her dad in Ukraine. In an exclusive interview with US magazine in 2019, the actress asserted, 

We’re still respectful of each other, and we still have that friendship with each other. It’s not a situation that you find yourself in all that often, so it’s a new one. But I think we’ve done a really good job.

After Klitschko, Panettiere’s love life took a rough turn with Brian Hickerson, whose abusive behavior led to his 2019 arrest for domestic violence. Klitschko became “very protective” of their daughter, ensuring that Hickerson had no contact with her at all. After a while, Panettiere received a protective order and was able to escape the dangerous situation.

Through all the drama, she never stopped supporting Klitschko, and that support only grew when he enlisted in the Ukrainian army to fight against Russia in 2022. “I have personally witnessed the strength of the Ukrainian people,” she mentioned in her writing. Despite their romance’s abrupt ending, she held him in the highest regard.

Inside Panettiere and Klitschko’s Tumultuous Relationship

Hayden with her family | Twitter (@Hayden Panettiere)

Panettiere and Klitschko met at a party in 2009, and they instantly hit it off. It seemed like wedding bells were on the horizon by 2013, when they discreetly became engaged. They welcomed their daughter, Kaya, in Dec. 2014.

They broke up in 2018, and Panettiere revealed in 2022 that her addiction was a major factor. For Panettiere, letting Kaya go was the toughest decision, but she saw it as a necessary step to being a better mom.

Klitschko’s been praised as a fantastic father, though Panettiere admitted on Red Table Talk that their daughter, Kaya, still needed her in ways only a mother could provide. She recalled the heartbreaking moment when Klitschko mentioned that Kaya was asking other women if she could call them mommy. To him, it was a funny story, but to Panettiere, it was a trauma reaction—a cry for help.

The couple’s bond, though changed, remained strong in the face of personal and global challenges.