Hayden Panettiere has come out as bisexual after years of feeling ‘forced to be perfect’ in order to avoid public scrutiny.
‘It’s sad that I had to wait till I was 36 years old to share that part of me, but better late than never, right?’ the Nashville alum told Us Weekly on Wednesday.
‘I’ve chosen to share it with the world, I’m comfortable saying I’m bisexual. I’m comfortable to confidently say that, yes, I am bisexual. I said it!’
Despite having little privacy due to ‘paparazzi always outside waiting for me,’ Panettiere still managed to secretly date women, whom she preferred to men from ‘a very, very young age.’
‘[I was] much more into women,’ the two-time Golden Globe nominee said.
‘But, yeah, I have explored it, but I don’t think I ever had the courage, because I hadn’t shared this with anybody.
Hayden Panettiere has come out as bisexual after years of feeling ‘forced to be perfect’ in order to avoid public scrutiny
‘It’s sad that I had to wait till I was 36 years old to share that part of me, but better late than never, right?’ the Nashville alum told Us Weekly on Wednesday. ‘I’ve chosen to share it with the world, I’m comfortable saying I’m bisexual. I’m comfortable to confidently say that, yes, I am bisexual. I said it!’
‘I didn’t really have the courage to throw myself fully, emotionally into it, because then if I did fall in love, that wasn’t something that I wanted to ever have to hide. I didn’t feel confident enough, and I was too afraid to really let that part of me explore that part of me.’
Panettiere worried it would look like she was ‘jumping on the bandwagon’ during a ‘period of time, where it felt like people coming out, especially women coming out, and saying that they were bisexual, or liked girls, was a fad.’
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The Grammy-nominated narrator decided to be ‘completely brutally honest’ about her sexuality during the two years she spent writing her 320-page memoir, This Is Me: A Reckoning, which Grand Central Publishing will release on May 19.
Panettiere has only ever publicly dated men and she most recently split from convicted felon Brian Hickerson in 2020 following his eight domestic violence arrests.
She lost custody of her 11-year-old daughter Kaya Evdokia Klitschko with ex-fiancé – retired heavyweight boxer Wladimir Klitschko – whom she amicably split from in 2018 after their nine-year on/off relationship.
The Equal Means Equal activist also previously dated her much older Heroes co-star Milo Ventimiglia, retired NFL wide receiver Scotty McKnight, Welsh TV presenter Steve Jones, singer Jesse McCartney, The Hills alum Stephen Colletti and the late Pink Taco founder Harry Morton.
The homeschooled millennial is scheduled to kick off her four-date This Is Me book tour at the Barnes & Noble in Union Square in her native New York City on May 19.
Despite having little privacy due to ‘paparazzi always outside waiting for me,’ Panettiere still managed to secretly date women, whom she preferred to men from ‘a very, very young age’
The two-time Golden Globe nominee decided to be ‘completely brutally honest’ about her sexuality during the two years she spent writing her 320-page memoir This Is Me: A Reckoning, which Grand Central Publishing will release on May 19
Panettiere has only ever publicly dated men and she most recently split from convicted felon Brian Hickerson in 2020 following his eight domestic violence arrests. Above, together in 2019
The Grammy-nominated narrator lost custody of her 11-year-old daughter, Kaya Evdokia Klitschko, with ex-fiancé – retired heavyweight boxer Wladimir Klitschko – whom she amicably split from in 2018 after their nine-year on/off relationship. Above, together in 2013
Panettiere also previously dated her much older Heroes co-star Milo Ventimiglia (above in 2007), retired NFL wide receiver Scotty McKnight, Welsh TV presenter Steve Jones, singer Jesse McCartney, The Hills alum Stephen Colletti and the late Pink Taco founder Harry Morton
The Equal Means Equal activist is scheduled to kick off her four-date This Is Me book tour at the Barnes & Noble in Union Square in her native New York City on May 19
UK/Australian audiences can catch Panettiere’s latest performance as grieving mother Sarah Pangborn in Brandon Auman’s dismally reviewed psychological thriller, Sleepwalker, when it arrives in theaters this July
Panettiere’s tell-all was previously titled Break Free: Addiction, Trauma, and How the Cheerleader Saved Herself.
The Breed Apart actress also wrote about her ‘addiction and recovery’ after completing two rehab stints for dependence on opioids and alcohol.
UK/Australian audiences can catch the 5ft blonde’s latest performance as grieving mother Sarah Pangborn in Brandon Auman’s dismally reviewed psychological thriller, Sleepwalker, when it arrives in theaters this July.
Panettiere also served as executive producer on the project.
