Inside Hayden Panettiere’s relationship with The Traitors star Stephen Colletti
They recently ran into each other before she passed
Before sadly passing away at 36, Hayden Panettiere dated The Traitors star Stephen Colletti from 2006 to 2007. Here’s everything you need to know about Hayden and Stephen’s relationship.
Hayden and Stephen were in a relationship for almost two years, and the two split at the end of 2007.
They were both young stars in Hollywood, with Hayden becoming a breakout star from Heroes and Stephen coming off Laguna Beach and going on to One Tree Hill.
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Just months before her death, Hayden spoke to Us Weekly in April about how important her relationship with Stephen was in helping her deal with the paparazzi, sharing: “I’m so grateful that he was part of my life, especially when he was. Because when I was with him was when I started having to deal with paparazzi and tabloids and being the focal point of them.”
Because Stephen had been on Laguna Beach from 2004 to 2005, the attention from the press was “something he had dealt with before.” She continued: “He was able to help guide me through that experience and getting used to that”, adding that he was “very protective of me.”
Hayden shared: “He never appeared to be or came off as a bad guy. So I knew that there was a way to protect yourself and put up boundaries without being offensive or rude.”
They had an amicable breakup at the end of 2007: “We just ended up going our separate ways, there wasn’t really a story there,” Hayden said.
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Hayden and Stephen recently ran into each other, she told Us Weekly. “I think he’s about to become a dad and I’m so happy for him,” she said about Stephen.
“We don’t keep in touch the way that I wish we did, because he’s such a great guy, but there was no drama,” Hayden opened up.
Since their split, Stephen married Alex Weaver in 2025, and they’ve had their first child together named Rhodes August Colletti in May 2026. He’s gone on to star in the last season of The Traitors as a Faithful, which premiered earlier this year.
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