The final photo of actor Jansen Panettiere has surfaced after his shocking sudden death at the age of 28.
The image posted on February 6 on Instagram features Panettiere smiling broadly in front of a colorful graffiti mural in Nyack, NY.
“Graffiti is illegal,” he playfully captioned the photograph to his 13,400 followers.
His reported girlfriend, Catherine Michie, commented on the photo post: “The law can’t stop Jansen Panettiere” and “Love.”
Panettiere, the brother of actress Hayden Panettiere, 33, died Sunday at home in New York according to a source close to his family, TMZ reported Monday. His official cause of death has not been released, but police say there was no foul play suspected.
According to the official bio on his website, the actor-turned-visual-artist revealed his private battle with mental health issues: “After spending time in LA as an adult he was ridden with terrible anxiety and depression,” the artist’s statement reads, noting he later found “healing” while creating more than 50 pieces of “visceral and emotive work.”
Later Monday, registered nurse Michie, 25, posted a public love letter to her late boyfriend, whom she nicknamed “Bubbles.”
“I met you only a year ago, but you have been my best friend and biggest fan,” Michie wrote. “I will never forget the first time I saw your face and the first things you said to me. Words cannot express the pain of knowing I won’t hear your laugh again. I hope you find peace, and I’m sorry I wasn’t there when you needed me most.”
She continued, “The world is better because you were in it. I know we will paint together again someday. I’ll always be your sugarpop. Someone wake me up and tell me this is a dream. Love you, Bubbles.”
An actor in his own right, Panettiere worked on early 2000s projects such as “Even Stevens,” “Blue’s Clues,” “Robots” and “Ice Age: The Meltdown.”
Jansen, who was five years younger than Hayden, was her only sibling. The duo worked together on “Tiger Cruise” in 2004 and “Racing Stripes” in 2005.
In 2008, Jansen was nominated for a Young Artist Award for his role as Luke in “The Last Day of Summer.”
Panettiere had reportedly been suffering from another bout of depression, a source told the Daily Mail.
“He had been having a rough time lately with his career and he was dragged in so many directions,” the source told the outlet. “Hayden is just inconsolable. He was her best friend and her only brother. He was such a nice guy but he lived on the edge.”
He voiced TrumanX in 15 episodes of Nickelodeon’s “The X’s” from 2005 to 2006. He also appeared in an episode of “The Walking Dead” in 2019.
Jansen’s most recent credit was in the holiday comedy-drama movie “Love and Love Not” in 2022.
He is credited with four more upcoming projects, according to his IMDb.
Hayden, who stars in the upcoming “Scream 6” movie, has not yet publicly reacted to Jansen’s reported death.
The Post has contacted reps for both Jansen and Hayden for comment.
