Aubrey Plaza has finally broken her silence about her husband Jeff Baena’s death in January. Only seven months have passed since, and the Agatha: All Along star describes the loss as “a daily struggle.”
The writer-director died by suicide at the age of 47. However, Plaza had not spoken about Baena’s tragic passing until now.
By the looks of it, she’s now ready to face the world and share her feelings.
What Did Aubrey Plaza Say About Jeff Baena’s Death?
During an appearance on Tuesday’s episode of Good Hang with Amy Poehler podcast, Plaza was asked by her former Parks and Recreation co-star about her “terrible, terrible, tragic year” after losing Baena, coping with grief, and seeking support.
“Right in this very, very present moment, I feel happy to be with you,” The White Lotus star told Poehler. “Overall, I'm here and I'm functioning. I feel really grateful to be moving through the world. I think I'm okay, but it's like a daily struggle, obviously.”
She then compared her grief to the 2025 movie The Gorge, which starred Miles Teller and Anya Taylor-Joy. The film features cliffs on opposite sides with a gorge in the middle filled
“I swear when I watched it, I was like that feels like what my grief is like … or what grief could be like,” Plaza continued.
“At all times there's like a giant ocean of awfulness, that's like right there and I can see it. Sometimes I just want to dive into it, and just like be in it. Then sometimes I just look at it, and sometimes I try to get away from it. But, it's always there.”
When Did Aubrey Plaza and Jeff Baena Start Dating?
Plaza and Baena started dating in 2011, but the two kept their romance very private. The next thing fans knew, they were already married in May 2021.
At the time, the 41-year-old actress had already referred to the film director as her “darling husband” in an Instagram post.
“So proud of my darling husband @jeffbaena for dreaming up another film that takes us to Italia to cause some more trouble,” she captioned the post.
However, a medical examiner's report in March confirmed the couple separated in September 2024—four months before Baena's passing in January.
Law enforcement told TMZ that police and fire personnel responded to a Los Angeles home for a “death investigation” after an assistant discovered the director lifeless.
Baena, best known for directing Life After Beth and The Little Hours, was pronounced dead at the scene. The Los Angeles Medical Examiner ruled the manner of his death as “suicide by hanging.”
His sudden passing didn’t just leave Plaza mourning, but also left his friends, fans, and family grieving for a talented filmmaker gone too soon.
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