Jansen Panettiere, actor and brother of Hayden Panettiere, dies at 28

Actor Jansen Panettiere, a child star of the 2000s and brother of actress Hayden Panettiere, has died. He was 28.

Panettiere died Sunday in New York, according to reports from Deadline, CNN and ABC News. A cause of death was not given. An investigation into Panettiere’s death is also underway.

Panettiere made his acting debut in 2002 with a voice role in the animated TV series “Midori’s Nintendoland Bakery,” which he followed with appearances in the series “Even Stevens,” “Hope & Faith” and “Third Watch.”

Panettiere co-starred with his sister Hayden in the 2004 Disney Channel film “Tiger Cruise,” which was inspired by the events of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

The actor rounded out the 2000s with additional voice roles in “Robots,” “Ice Age: The Meltdown” and Nickelodeon’s action comedy “The X’s,” as well as onscreen appearances in 2007’s “The Babysitters,” 2008’s “The Secrets of Jonathan Sperry” and 2009’s “The Perfect Game.”

Panettiere gave a glimpse into his sibling bond with Hayden in an Instagram post in January, sharing a black-and-white photo of Hayden giving Panettiere an at-home haircut.

“Not the first haircut she’s tried to give me,” Panettiere wrote.

Panettiere’s last role was in the 2022 romantic comedy “Love and Love Not.”