Heroes creator Tim Kring says Hayden Panettiere "never seemed enamored" with her success.

The writer and producer, who served as showrunner on the popular superhero drama from 2006 to 2010, has reflected on his time getting to know Panettiere as a teenager, hailing the late star as a "singularly talented actor" days after her tragic death aged 36 on Sunday (16.08.26).

In a piece of Variety, he wrote: "She enjoyed her sudden success but never seemed enamored with it.

"She wanted to represent the show itself. And the cast members were very protective of her too.

"We all understood that she was a unique talent, and we felt the responsibility to caretake that talent for the short time we had with her on the show."

Panettiere first appeared in commercials from just 11 months old, and had early roles in the likes of soap operas One Life To Live and Guiding Light, making her feature film debut as the voice of Princess Dot in 1998's A Bug's Life.

This was followed by roles in the likes of The Object of My Affection, Dinosaur, If You Believe, Ally McBeal, Malcolm In The Middle, Ice Princess and more.

Heroes was her breakout role, and Kring described Panettiere, who played cheerleader Claire Bennet on the show, as a "true team player".

He recalled: "She was levelheaded beyond her years as a person and singularly talented as an actor, with an almost savant-like quality about her work.

"It wasn't just that Hayden could learn lines with ease -- it was her rare ability to find and explore the nuances of drama and humor and pathos in any scene she was in."

Kring noted that Panettiere didn't have a "sense of jaded child actor quality to her at all" by the time she was auditioning for Heroes aged 16.

Despite being "confident in her abilities", he remembers her appearing "still guileless, sweet and always open to suggestions".

He added: "It was a fait accompli that she would embody the role of Claire Bennet, aka the Cheerleader, from the moment we met her."

Kring pointed out there was a "kind of a meta quality" to her performance as she was playing her actual age, but showing talent far beyond her years.

He explained: "Most 16-year-olds don't know how to interpret or articulate these emotions, let alone embody them.

"But she had a deep understanding of human nature that belied her age.

"As a result, she could find moments within a scene that always made it deeper, or funnier, or more powerful than it was on the page."

Kring also praised the way she was able to "cry with intensity for 12 takes in a row" when necessary, before going back to her actual self as soon as the camera stopped rolling.

He said: "When the director yelled 'Cut,' she'd go back to texting her friends or laughing with her castmates right up until the moment the director called 'Action' for the next take."

Hayden's father, Alan Panettiere, broke the news of her death on Monday (17.08.26).

He said in a statement through her representative: "It is with profound sadness that we share the tragic passing of our beloved Hayden.

"She was an incredible light and a force of nature who brought immeasurable love and joy to all who knew her - and to the millions who watched her onscreen."