Hayden Panettiere first got into the acting business at the tender age of 11 months, by the age of seven she had already landed her second soap opera gig and by the time she was ready for high school, she had several film and television credits under her belt.

At the age of 17, she became a household name thanks to her role as cheerleader Claire Bennet on the hit show Heroes.

Now the third season on our SHOWTIME screens with caught up with the lady who simply is indestructible…

SHOWTIME: Is there a super power that you think would benefit you as a young Hollywood star or any other young Hollywood star? Which would benefit you the most?

HAYDEN PANETTIERE: The ability to be invisible.

SHOWTIME: Really, why’s that?

HAYDEN PANETTIERE: Oh, yeah. Because, I think, obviously we can blame most of it on people who are doing the bad things they aren't supposed to be doing, but at the same time when you have cameras in your face all the time, there's no room to mess up even slightly. Things get turned around on you. So, if I could walk out my door or drive my car out and not be followed by paparazzi, I'd be a very happy person.

SHOWTIME: With everything you have gone through during the past three seasons, how has that changed the way you view what people have had to go through with working on a weekly series like this?

HAYDEN PANETTIERE: I would have had no idea what to expect. I did do Ally McBeal for a season, but I was 12 and it’s a totally different groove, and I wasn’t in it every day and wasn’t one of the major characters. It has been crazy, but this show is unlike probably any show that any one shoots. We shoot it like a movie, it’s like we are doing a full length feature film every day. So in that aspect my past features film career has definitely prepared me for that. But there is no place that I’d rather be, I love my cast, I love my crew.

SHOWTIME: Does the physical aspect of your role come easy for you?

HAYDEN PANETTIERE: I think so. I hope so. Both my parents played a lot of sports. I played a lot of sports, when I was younger. I think the whole racing zebras [in Racing Stripes], figure skating [in Ice Princess] and all that stuff paid off, in that case.

SHOWTIME: Tell us what the past couple of years have been like, since Heroes began.

HAYDEN PANETTIERE: This business tends to turn your life upside down. For some strange reason, I’ve become one of the targets of the paparazzi. Things get crazy. You try and hold on to that little part of normal that you can.

SHOWTIME: Other than paparazzi chasing you every where, how else has your life changed since Heroes, what else has happened good or bad, what has the show brought you?

HAYDEN PANETTIERE: I think it has been great, it’s been fun. I have a new family, a whole family made up of lots of brothers and two dads. (Laughs) But it has been a blast, everything I could have ever dreamed of and never should have imagined. You just don’t expect that kind of success for yourself.

SHOWTIME: Could you explain your approach to handling the pressures on screen and off that come with being an actress?

HAYDEN PANETTIERE: I think that my approach to acting, because it is something that I love, it is something that I respect, and something that makes me want to be respected for what I do. That is what I’m working towards, is working to be a respected actress, and in order to be a respected actress there are certain things that you just can’t do. And I think unfortunately in this business when people start getting all those perks and they head down the wrong road, they lose track of what’s important.

SHOWTIME: It seems, in a weird way, that we’re all pushing these young women toward meltdowns.

HAYDEN PANETTIERE: Absolutely. Britney Spears, for example. That girl was the epitome of beauty when I was younger. And we built her up and just ripped her down, put every aspect of her life under a microscope. Probably made 90 percent of the stuff up along the way. I can’t even imagine if I had it like she does. She’s someone that I’m rooting for, and I hope she can make that comeback.

SHOWTIME: We’ve seen you looking gorgeous on the red carpet at the awards, do you get lots of freebies now?

HAYDEN PANETTIERE: These swag things for the Golden Globes are incredible. It’s been a lot easier, but of course, no one in this business really owns anything themselves. Most of their clothes are either loaners, or they’re given to them. But, yeah, it’s always fun. I’m a girl and I like getting clothes. I don’t usually get to keep any of them, like my Golden Globes dress, but its fun. You don’t really want to keep gowns that are $40,000 either. That’s too much.

SHOWTIME: Who were you excited to meet at the Globes?

HAYDEN PANETTIERE: Well, I was looking down at Brangelina so that was pretty cool. That was very cool.