As a child of the early 2000s, Ice Princess was a formative film for me. The 2005 Disney movie about a girl getting into the world of figure skating was inspiring and incredibly entertaining. It also introduced me to Hayden Panettiere and Michelle Trachtenberg. It’s hard to believe both actresses have passed away, and now, right after the death of the Heroes star, the director of Ice Princess has opened up about working with her and Trachtenberg.
Hayden Panettiere died on August 16, 2026, and immediately after the news broke and tributes for the Nashville actress started pouring in, Ice Princess began trending. It’s hard to comprehend that both the film’s stars have now passed away, and Variety spoke to the movie’s director, Tim Fywell, about working with them in the wake of their deaths:
