Hayden Panettiere’s estranged mother Leslie Vogel is hitting back at her “deserved” daughter’s upcoming revelations.
During the press tour for This Is Me: A Reckoning, Panettiere, 36, made various claims about her relationship with Vogel, who once managed her career.
In response, Vogel, 70, exclusively told Page Six that she believes “current drama is partly about selling books.”
She continues, “There is a ‘style’ of personality that manifests as a desire for control, entitlement, and a lack of empathy. The greatest fear is that someone will discover who they really are through the mask they present to the world.”
Vogel said that regardless of “continued support efforts” and “comfort,” “there is no way to ‘cure’ this condition.” No matter how much “encouragement” you give, it is never enough.
Vogel, a former actress, argued that “this personality style does not accept responsibility for their life choices, so they feel no need to change their behavior.”
“After 20 years of trauma, I took the advice of experts and chose the no-contact route. We (as we know) are well aware of the painful observation that many parents of entertainment children end up seeing the self-destructive path they sometimes choose. No parent wants this scenario. We want our children to do the best for themselves and live a peaceful and joyful life!”
“Unfortunately, this is beyond our control. You cannot save someone who does not want to be saved. Complete acceptance is the most difficult task a parent must grapple with. Unfortunately, I have seen many such situations in my life experience.”
Vogel, whose son Janssen Panettiere died in February 2023 at the age of 28, added: “When someone leaves, a smear campaign begins. Accusations, anger, belittling and gaslighting are typical signs of this behavioral style. The thirst for drama and punitive actions is traditional and natural.”
Although she is “now retired” and seeking “a personal path to a joyful and peaceful life,” the founder of the Jansen Lane Panettiere Arts Foundation acknowledged that “there is always a glimmer of hope that[Hayden]will also find a path to inner peace.”
Representatives for Hayden, who previously battled alcohol and opioid addiction, did not immediately respond to Page Six’s request for comment.
Earlier this week, the “Heroes” star recalled the moment she mustered up the “courage” to finally “break up” with Vogel, the “boss” who had been managing her career since she was a child.
Hayden told podcaster Jay Shetty that when she was 19 and in the middle of filming the superhero drama series, which ran from 2006 to 2010, she told Vogel, “I don’t want to work with you anymore. I just want you to be my mom.”
She claimed her mother replied, “You owe me,” which her mother apparently “didn’t expect.”
Ms Hayden was partially “relieved” that the conversation was “short”, but soon felt “a dark cloud was gathering over[her]head, and I was like, ‘What does it mean that I owe her? What payment is she expecting?'”
The ‘Remember the Titans’ star was ‘disappointed’ when she ‘found out’ that her mother allegedly just wanted ‘money’.
Once the “business aspect” of their relationship was “removed,” Hayden hoped their personal relationship would improve.
“The fact that she didn’t seem to want or have any desire to have a relationship with me was a hard pill to swallow,” she told Jetty.
Although Hayden was “incredibly grateful” for her mother’s guidance early in her career, she claimed Vogel had high expectations for her and found it difficult to satisfy her as both a manager and a parent.
Hayden also recalled the “very strange” and “uncomfortable” “role reversal” of being a child and then a teenager contributing financially to the family union.
When the topic of her late brother came up, she confessed that she “felt so guilty” that her career affected the time she was able to spend with her mother and brother.
“I remember one night[Vogel]actually turned to me and said, ‘It’s your fault I miss my son growing up.’ It was a punch in the gut,” Hayden claimed, adding that even though he “loved” acting and had a “great experience,” he “didn’t ask for it.”
