James Blunt denies being 'famous' man in Hayden Panettiere's yacht story

James Blunt is distancing himself from online speculation linking him to a disturbing yacht encounter described in Hayden Panettiere's memoir, This Is Me: A Reckoning. 

Blunt shared a Substack article on social media Monday arguing that he is not the unnamed British singer-songwriter Panettiere wrote about being placed in bed beside when she was 18, without directly addressing the claim in his own words.

In her memoir, Panettiere described being led by someone she'd trusted into a small cabin, where she was placed in bed next to an undressed, "very famous" British singer-songwriter in his 30s. 

She recounted the moment on the On Purpose With Jay Shetty podcast, saying: "She physically put me in the bed next to this undressed man who was very famous... [it was] like this was just an average day for him and this is something that happens all the time." 

Panettiere said she went into "survival mode," describing the fear that overtook her. 

"My hair stood on end and I became ferocious." 

She never publicly identified either the singer or the friend involved, referring to the woman only as "Stella" in the book.

Online speculation quickly connected the story to Blunt and RHOBH star Diana Jenkins, based on a resurfaced 2009 photo showing the two alongside Panettiere and actor Justin Long at an amfAR after-party in Antibes, France, as well as a chapter in Blunt's own memoir titled Diana's Boat, in which he described being taken to Cannes on a superyacht chartered by Jenkins. 

Journalist Dean Piper, whose Substack article Blunt shared, argued the timeline doesn't support the theory, noting Panettiere was actually 19, nearly 20, at the time she was photographed with Blunt in Cannes in 2009, not 18, as described in her memoir. 

Jenkins has separately and forcefully denied any connection to the story, threatening legal action against anyone suggesting she was involved.

The renewed attention comes just over a week after Panettiere's death on August 16 at age 36. 

She was found unresponsive at a South Carolina apartment complex, her death remains under investigation, and a cause has not yet been released.