Jeff Baena, director and husband of actress Aubrey Plaza, has died at the age of 47. Best known for directing Life After Beth (2014), the director also directed Joshy (2016), The Little Hours (2017), Horse Girl (2020) and Spin Me Round (2022). Additionally, he co-wrote I Heart Huckabees (2004).
Police and firefighters reached the director’s home in Los Angeles on Friday (January 3) around 10.30 am after one of his assistants found him dead, as reported by TMZ. The circumstances of his death are unclear at the moment and we will update the article should new information arrive. A spokesperson for Aubrey Plaza released the following statement:
The family is shocked and asks for privacy to be respected during this difficult time.
After graduating from NYU Film School, Baena moved to Los Angeles to begin building his career. Here he began to enter the world of cinema, working first with Robert Zemeckis and later with David O. Russell.
In 2014 he made his directorial debut with the aforementioned Life After Beth, also writing the screenplay. The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival that same year and was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize. The film stars Aubrey Plaza who, in 2020, became his wife.
Baena is survived by his wife Aubrey Plaza, mother Barbara Stern and stepfather Roger Stern, father Scott Baena and stepmother Michele Baena, brother Brad Baena, and stepsister and stepbrother Bianca Gabay and Jed Fluxman.
To conclude, we cannot do anything other than extend our deepest condolences to Jeff Baena’s family and friends.
