Hayden Panettiere was open about her past struggles ― and hopeful for the future ― in one of her last interviews months before her death.

During an appearance on Jay Shetty’s “On Purpose” podcast back in May, the actor spoke about moving forward as she promoted her memoir, “This Is Me: A Reckoning.”

“I finally feel like I have shaken off all of this darkness and this negativity,” she said. “I can feel all the exciting possibilities. I feel like I have a lot more life to live.”

Panettiere addressed her battles with both alcoholism and postpartum depression in the candid interview. Panettiere shares an 11-year-old daughter, Kaya, with her former fiancé, boxer Wladimir Klitschko.

“It was an on-and-off battle for a really long time, and getting out of that depression was really difficult,” she said.

“And the fact that I didn’t have the time to really focus on healing myself and fixing myself, figuring out how to navigate this and get back to my old self ― because I was on ‘Nashville,’ and we were shooting so much.”

“At one point, I did have to say to the show, ‘I have to go get treatment. You’re going to have to write me out of the script,’ which upset a lot of people and made me feel awful, because I’d always prided myself on being a professional,” she explained. “But it was incredibly important for me to get my head screwed on straight, or I was just going to go off the deep end. I felt myself sinking further and further and further into this dark hole that I just could not climb out of.”

Also in the interview, Panettiere also spoke about the unexpected death of her brother and best friend, Jansen Panettiere, in 2023.

“When he first died, I just remember screaming, ‘I don’t want to live in a world where he doesn’t exist,’” she said as she wiped away tears.

“He was such a big, big personality,” she said, adding that “he was just one of those people I never thought anything could take him down or take him away. He was so good too. And it makes you so angry to see that there are bad people thriving in this world, and then one so good that’s just taken from you. It’s not fair. It doesn’t make sense.”

“I’ll never get over it,” she said. “It’ll just evolve.”

Panettiere’s father, Skip, confirmed on Sunday to ABC News that the “Remember the Titans” star had died. Panettiere was 36, and set to celebrate her 37th birthday on Friday.

“It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden,” Skip Panettiere said. “She was an incredible light and a force of nature who brought immeasurable love and joy to all who knew her – and to the millions who watched her onscreen.”

A representative for the star also told ABC News that she was found dead in Greenville, South Carolina. HuffPost has reached out to representatives for Panettiere, as well as the Greenville Police Department.

Need help with substance use disorder or mental health issues? In the U.S., call 800-662-HELP (4357) for the SAMHSA National Helpline.

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