Melissa Gilbert called for stronger protections for child actors following the recent deaths of Hayden Panettiere, Daveigh Chase and Michelle Trachtenberg.
The Little House on the Prairie alum, 62, addressed the subject in an essay published August 22. Gilbert drew on her own experience as a child performer while discussing the pressures young actors can face in the entertainment industry.
Melissa’s plea follows Hayden Panettiere’s death as Timothy Busfield awaits trial
Gilbert said the deaths affected her because she shared the experience of growing up as a performer.
“I did not know Hayden personally and only worked briefly with Mishy and Daveigh. It feels personal because I was them,” Gilbert wrote.
She recalled returning to work on Little House on the Prairie within months of her father’s death when she was 11. Gilbert said adults on set did not discuss his death with her or offer condolences because they feared she might become too upset to work.
That experience contributed to what Gilbert described as a pattern of continuing to work through physical and emotional difficulties. She recalled undergoing an emergency appendectomy during a movie shoot in Oregon and returning to work three days later. Gilbert said she later developed a severe fever and required hospitalization after completing her scenes.
“These young professionals are children, and we should make sure they are allowed to be children,” Gilbert wrote. “They should be allowed to say ‘no.’ Not push through physical or emotional pain. Not be made to support their entire families.”
Gilbert proposed discussions with studio and network executives about reducing exploitation. She also suggested free and accessible mental health services for child actors and greater protection from media attention.
“All I know is something has got to be done,” she wrote.
The essay came seven months after Gilbert’s husband, Timothy Busfield, faced an indictment in New Mexico. A grand jury indicted him on four counts of criminal sexual contact of a minor involving a child under 13. The charges concern alleged incidents from October 2022 and September 2023.
Busfield pleaded not guilty to all four charges. His trial is scheduled to begin in May 2027.
Gilbert previously told Good Morning America that she was “100% confident he will be exonerated.” She said her view of justice in the case included “exoneration” and “an apology.”
If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
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