Hayden Panettiere Says Giving Up Custody Of Her Daughter Was ‘The Most Heartbreaking Thing’

On this week’s episode of Red Table Talk, Hayden Panettiere opened up about relinquishing custody of her seven-year-old daughter Kaya to her ex-fiancé Wladimir Klitschko. In 2018, as the Heroes actress was battling an addiction to alcohol and pills, Kaya went to live with her father in Ukraine.

In a clip released on Tuesday (September 27th), Panettiere said signing the custody papers was “most heartbreaking thing I’ve ever had to do in my life.”

She explained, “At first it was not because it wasn’t a discussion. If Klitschko had come to me and said I think because of where you’re at right now and your struggles that you’re having it would be good for her to be over here with me for a while — which if I had probably had enough of a conversation I would’ve said okay that makes sense, I get it, I’ll come there to visit and stuff like that.”

She continued, “Because of the way that it was done, it was very upsetting. I mean, it was the worst signing those papers, the most heartbreaking thing I’ve ever, ever had to do in my life.” She went on to say that the “papers were to give Klitschko full custody.”

Panettiere added, “I was gonna go work on myself, I was gonna get better, and when I got better then things would change and she could come to me and I could have my time with her but that didn’t happen.”