Paquin, Romano and Gilbert Demand Child Actor Protections After 3 Deaths
Updated
Updated · Hollywood Reporter · Aug 23
Paquin, Romano and Gilbert Demand Child Actor Protections After 3 Deaths
3 articles · Updated · Hollywood Reporter · Aug 23
Summary
Three former child stars — Anna Paquin, Christy Carlson Romano and Melissa Gilbert — publicly urged Hollywood to strengthen protections for young performers after the recent deaths of Hayden Panettiere, Daveigh Chase and Michelle Trachtenberg.
Paquin said the cluster of deaths among former female child stars was "not a coincidence," arguing industry safeguards looked stronger on paper than in practice and calling for support systems that make disclosure less intimidating.
Romano, in an Elle essay, likened early fame to repeated trauma rather than privilege, saying child performers generate profits while their mental health needs are treated as irrelevant.
Gilbert, writing on Substack, asked where unions, regulations and privacy protections were, saying three deaths in close succession showed an industry that still uses and discards its youngest talent.
The push follows Hayden Panettiere's death at 36 last Sunday; Trachtenberg died in February 2025 at 39, and Chase died in July at 35.