Remembering Heroes and Panettiere
Remembering Hayden Panettiere and the enduring legacy of NBC's hit series Heroes.
Anonymous
NBC’s Heroes premiered in September 2006, turning its story of ordinary people with extraordinary abilities into a pop-culture hit and helping demonstrate that superhero dramas could succeed on network television. Creator Tim Kring says Hayden Panettiere was the clear choice for cheerleader Claire Bennet, praising her unusual girl-next-door quality, range and ability to shift instantly into emotionally demanding scenes. The anniversary coverage also recalls how the phrase “Save the cheerleader, save the world” grew from a writers’ room shorthand into the show’s defining marketing tagline. Though Heroes ran for four seasons and later returned as Heroes Reborn, its momentum faded after the 2007 writers’ strike disrupted its second season. Panettiere’s recent accidental death at age 36 has given the anniversary renewed poignancy and prompted tributes to her talent and legacy.
Key Points
1
The series’ September 2006 premiere drew more than 14 million viewers, and its first season received eight Emmy nominations.
2
Kring said the production sought recognizable but not overly famous actors because its budget could not stretch to stars; he described superhero stories on network television as an audience executives underestimated: “a sleeping giant waiting to be tapped into.”
3
Panettiere’s first-episode line, “I walked through fire, and I didn’t get burned,” captures Claire’s regenerative ability; Kring recalled that she could switch from casual conversation between takes to repeatedly delivering emotionally intense scenes, astonishing her castmates.
4
“Save the cheerleader, save the world” began as writers’ room shorthand, became dialogue for Masi Oka’s Hiro Nakamura, and was then adopted by NBC as the show’s marketing campaign.
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