Wholesome Hollywood Actress Involved in Major L.A. Bar Brawl

Hayden Panettiere, one of the leading stars in the Country Music Television series “Nashville,” recently appeared on a video recorded with a smartphone outside of the Sunset Marquis restaurant, which many celebrities are known to frequent. The video posted by the TMZ news website shows Panettiere and her boyfriend Brian Hickerson, who is no stranger to scuffles, getting into a free-for-all that spilled from the fancy restaurant onto the sidewalk.

The confrontation reportedly began in the restaurant after Hickerson made a snide comment to another table about their poor tipping practices. This white knight move prompted the offended party to move towards Panettiere’s table, where harassment towards Hickerson turned into physical taunting. It was at this point when Panettiere got involved by trying to talk her boyfriend out of getting into an altercation, but her words did not have the desired effect. The fight started in the restaurant’s lobby and spilled out of the front doors; Panettiere followed the fighters while screaming at Hickerson to remind him of his probation status.

Hickerson was arrested a couple of years ago after Panettiere complained about domestic violence. The actress went on shows such as Good Morning America to talk about the incident; at the time, she explained that her wish was to do anything to prevent Hickerson from getting physical again, and this is what witnesses saw unfold on the sidewalk of the Marquis Sunset.

In the world of celebrity entertainment, there is tabloid media trend that revolves around the “America’s Sweetheart” phenomenon. This term is applied to young and attractive actresses who are not only beautiful but also wholesome, witty, charming, and seemingly safe for the whole family to admire. Here we can think about Julia Roberts, Sandra Bullock, and Jennifer Aniston, but we also have others such as Selena Gomez, Jennifer Lawrence, Anne Hathaway, and definitely Hayden Panettiere.

Whenever we affix the America’s Sweetheart label to a young celebrity, it does not take long for that image to be shattered when a lunkhead romantic interest comes into the picture. Sandra Bullock, for example, had her life turned upside down when her husband Jesse James dragged her into a custody battle with Janine Lindemulder, a former pornographic film actress who recorded scenes with James, and which were leaked to gossip news websites a few years ago. It appears as if Panettiere is going through a similar episode in which her America’s Sweetheart status is being stripped by Hickerson.