Hayden Panettiere’s Private Security Was Given 'Clear Instructions' to Keep Brian Hickerson Away From Actress During Book Tour, Report Says

Hayden Panettiere's private security was allegedly told to keep her abusive on-again, off-again boyfriend far away during her book tour earlier this year.

The actress, who died at age 36 on August 16, first dated Brian Hickerson from 2018 to 2022, during which she accused him of physical violence on multiple occasions, resulting in two arrests and one jail sentence.

Panettiere released a memoir entitled This Is Me: A Reckoning in May 2026, in which she detailed his abuse over the course of their tumultuous relationship.

Now, The New York Times has reported that her private security team was under "strict instructions" to keep Hickerson at bay as she promoted the bestseller across the country.

For her stop on the tour, Panettiere visited a Barnes & Noble in New York City to sign copies of the book and meet fans.

According to the report, not only was the author's own security ordered to fend off her ex, but bookstore staff was also under "strict instructions" to "not let in a man named Brian Hickerson," per two anonymous individuals who worked on the tour.

Panettiere opened up about the extensive security detail required to keep her safe on Jay Shetty's "On Purpose" podcast in May.

"I needed an incredible amount of support and backup in order to make sure that there was no way for him to find his way back in," she revealed.

Three months later, Hickerson accompanied the star to Greenville, S.C., where she was declared dead after a suspected overdose.

Police reported there were "no signs of foul play" nor indications of "trauma" to the actress' body in their reports, though Hickerson's history of abuse has resurfaced since the incident.

"Hayden's death remains under investigation, and it is important to allow that investigation to proceed," his lawyer, Sloan Ellis, told TMZ on his behalf. "As has been publicly reported, police confirmed there were no signs of foul play."

Panettiere's estranged mother, Lesley Vogel, has been vocal about her disdain for "toxic" Hickerson, even claiming his involvement in her daughter's life could have led to her demise.

"Although my daughter and I were estranged, it was not for lack of care or love," she told Entertainment Tonight. "It was due to the involvement of a toxic individual who I believe led to her death."

Hickerson was sleeping in a South Carolina apartment where he and the Nashville alum were staying before he and his brother, Zach, realized the actress unconscious.

According to Zach, he called 911 as Brian administered Narcan. After police arrived and declared Hayden dead, Brian guided them to a "bag of medication" she had been taking.

Lesley is not sold on the brothers' story, calling the day's events "full of holes."

"I think there will be a discrepancy in the timeline, meaning Brian had to go out and buy the Narcan while he left her there because I do not believe he happened to have two bottles of Narcan on him, as he carried them around in his back pocket," she claimed. "I think Brian called his brother. My opinion. I think he knew she was deceased. Called his brother, and tried and built this story."

Some friends close to Hayden claimed she had been hiding the rekindling of her kinship with Brian, while others alleged that she reached out to him while falling back into old patterns of addiction.

"That relationship and association had led her down a dark path in the past, so her friends and inner circle were worried for her. There were concerns, and her friends really hoped she was doing OK," sources shared.

Lesley revealed that those close to the star long hoped she would get Brian out of her life for good.

"She knew that Brian was toxic," Lesley told Good Morning America. "She knew she had to get him out of her life."