Claire Bennet is a fictional character in the NBC psychological thriller superhero drama series Heroes.

[citation needed] Marc Hirschfeld, executive vice president of casting for NBC Universal Television stated, "When they were trying to decide who the cheerleader should be, I literally picked up the phone and said to the producers, 'You've got to meet Hayden Panettiere.

[5] Panettiere received positive reviews for her work on the show throughout the series run, constantly being referred to as a "breakout star".

[6] Professor of audiovisual arts Olvido Andújar Molina saw the character of Claire Bennet as a metaphor for the United States of America, as her role as a cheerleader functioned as one of the basic American cultural archetypes.

Claire Bennet's special ability was regeneration from any kind of accident, which in this reading symbolizes the idea of the United States being invincible in the long term.