Panettiere previously said Neutrogena ended their partnership after she spoke publicly about her postpartum depression.
Neutrogena has addressed mounting criticism over its past treatment of Hayden Panettiere following the actor’s death.
Allegations have resurfaced that Neutrogena dropped her as an ambassador after she publicly discussed her postpartum depression.
The company broke its silence Thursday, expressing condolences while acknowledging that Panettiere had previously felt unsupported.
“We are deeply saddened by Hayden Panettiere’s passing.” Neutrogena said in a statement shared on social media. “For more than a decade, Hayden was a valued member of our Neutrogena community.”
The brand continued. “We are proud to have partnered with her and understand that we made her feel unsupported during a very difficult time.”
“This is not what Neutrogena stands for or who we want to be.”
Neutrogena also pledged to make a “significant investment” in a longstanding community health partner supporting women’s health causes.
Panettiere had previously spoken openly about her experience with the brand in her 2026 memoir, This Is Me: A Reckoning. She wrote that Neutrogena cancelled her long-standing contract after she discussed receiving treatment for postpartum depression following the birth of her daughter, Kaya, in 2014.
In one of her final podcast appearances, Panettiere revisited the experience with Jay Shetty in May. She said she was shocked when her representative told her that her comments about postpartum depression had allegedly breached the morality clause in her contract.
She said she never expected discussing her mental health treatment to become the reason the company would end their relationship.
Neutrogena did not address the specific allegations in detail in its latest statement, instead acknowledging that Panettiere had felt unsupported and promising to direct funding towards women’s health.
