Anna Paquin is calling for stronger protections and support for former child performers after the recent deaths of Hayden Panettiere, Michelle Trachtenberg and Daveigh Chase, arguing that safeguards surrounding young stars have not always worked as intended.
In an Aug. 21 Instagram post, the 44-year-old Oscar winner focused particularly on girls who become sexualized while they are still children. As PEOPLE reported, Paquin wrote that former “presexualized female” child stars were “not as protected” by systems that may look effective on paper as they were supposed to be.
Paquin described former child performers as members of a “strange small club” and directly invited anyone struggling with experiences from the entertainment industry to contact her privately. “I believe you and I will stand by your side,” she wrote, ending with the message, “You aren’t alone.”
She subsequently clarified that she was addressing a specific experience, children working on sets who find themselves prematurely treated as sex objects. In comments covered by RTÉ, Paquin stressed that she was not suggesting harm occurs only within entertainment.
Paquin Says the Systems Around Young Female Stars Did Not Protect Them Enough
View this post on Instagram
Paquin’s original Instagram statement referred to Panettiere, Trachtenberg and Chase by their initials while expressing condolences to their families and “too many others.” She later explained that she used initials simply because she was running out of space in the Instagram caption, not because they carried another meaning.
The three women were all former child performers who died before turning 40, but their deaths should not be presented as having a common medical cause or as proof of Paquin’s broader argument about the industry. Panettiere died Aug. 16 at 36, and her official cause and manner of death remain undetermined while toxicology and other investigative work continue.
Trachtenberg died at 39 in February 2025. The New York City Office of Chief Medical Examiner later determined that she died from complications of diabetes mellitus and ruled the death natural. Chase died June 16, 2026, at 35; the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner listed AIDS as her cause of death and chronic polysubstance abuse as another significant condition.
Her Follow-Up Clarified That She Is Not Calling for an End to Child Acting
Paquin narrowed her point after the initial post, explaining that she was speaking “very specifically” about a child on a professional set who is prematurely turned into a sexual object. She added that she was not denying that children can be harmed in circumstances unrelated to entertainment.
In a 2024 interview with PEOPLE, she also said she would not automatically stop her twins from acting if they wanted to pursue the right opportunity. Her priority, she said, was keeping them “as protected as possible” and allowing them to be young without having every moment documented publicly.
Paquin offered herself as a private point of contact for people who may not feel ready to describe what happened to them publicly, saying she hoped support from others with similar experiences could make disclosure less frightening.
Paquin Has Spoken Before About the Power Imbalance She Saw as a Child Actor
Paquin entered the film industry at nine when Jane Campion cast her as Flora McGrath in The Piano, her first professional acting role. At the 1994 Academy Awards, she won best supporting actress at 11, becoming the second-youngest competitive acting winner in Oscars history. The Academy preserves her brief acceptance speech in its official archive.
She continued working throughout childhood in projects including Jane Eyre and Fly Away Home before moving into adult roles in the X-Men films and HBO’s True Blood.
In a 2019 Guardian interview, Paquin said she had experienced both excellent and “absolutely horrific” situations during her decades in the industry. She argued that people without power can be treated in unacceptable ways and said children may remain silent because they do not know what is normal and are afraid of getting into trouble.
In a separate Guardian interview later that year, Paquin said she had not personally experienced her childhood acting career as frightening because she did not understand the professional stakes at the time.
Melissa Gilbert and Other Former Child Stars Backed Paquin’s Message
View this post on Instagram
Paquin’s statement quickly drew responses from other performers who entered the entertainment business young. PEOPLE reported that Shiri Appleby, Alyssa Milano and Mara Wilson were among those reacting publicly, with Wilson writing, “Thank you so much for this.”
Melissa Gilbert, who began playing Laura Ingalls on Little House on the Prairie at 10, went further. She reposted Paquin’s statement and wrote, “Someone has to change this. Someone has to help,” before publishing a longer essay on Aug. 22 about protections for child performers.
Gilbert described being expected to work through illness, injury and grief when she was young, including returning to Little House after her father died when she was 11. She argued that child actors should be able to say no, should not be expected to work through physical or emotional distress and should not carry responsibility for financially supporting entire families.
She also proposed concrete industry changes, including conversations with studio and network leaders about reducing exploitation and access to free mental-health support for child performers.