Jeff Baena Mat Hayward/Getty Images
A cause of death for Aubrey Plaza’s husband, director Jeff Baena, has been revealed.
According to medical examiner records reviewed by Us Weekly, Baena’s official cause of death is listed as suicide. The same medical records revealed that an exam was conducted and his body can be released to the family. At the time of publication, the case status is still listed as “open” despite a cause of death being determined.
No additional causes or significant conditions regarding Baena’s passing were listed.
Baena died on Friday, January 3, at the age of 47, according to the same medical examiner records also viewed by Us. Up until now, the circumstances surrounding his death were unknown.
Baena is survived by Plaza, 40, who has not yet publicly addressed her husband’s passing. Us has reached out for comment.
Aubrey Plaza and Jeff Baena were together for over a decade ahead of his death in 2025. The pair started dating in 2011 but never confirmed exactly when they met or when their love story began. Plaza and the Horse Girl director have collaborated on films including Life After Beth and Joshy in 2016 and […]
Baena and Plaza first started dating in 2011 and officially tied the knot in 2020 after a decade together. The pair kept their relationship largely private, but Plaza opened up about her and Baena’s nuptials during a December 2021 appearance on the Ellen Degeneres Show.
“A lot of things happened during COVID for me. Yes, we got married. Big deal,” Plaza recalled at the time. “We got a little bored one night. We got married and I’ll tell you how: Onehourmarriage.com. That’s real, look it up.”
The Agatha All Along alum shared at the time that she and her husband had wed at home during lockdown.
“I created a very quick love altar in our yard. Facts of our love, little stones, smoke, fire. Things of that nature,” she continued at the time. “Then the man from Alhambra showed up in a Hawaiian shirt with a briefcase [to perform the ceremony]. … I can’t remember a lot of it, it was fuzzy. But I’m pretty sure it’s legal.”
While both Baena and Plaza each had their own successful solo careers, they were able to work together on numerous projects, including Life After Beth, The Little Hours and Spin Me Round.
“She’s awesome. I’d be working with her if she wasn’t my wife, but luckily she is my wife,” Baena told Reel Talker of working potentially with his wife in August 2022. “The opportunity to do something creative [together] where we’re both fulfilled — how rare is that?”
Months before Baena’s death, Plaza had briefly discussed her marriage during a September 2024 appearance on the Howard Stern Show. “I would stay away [from dating actors],” she quipped at the time. “I’m married to a writer/director. I’ve never, like, really dated an actor [or] been with an actor for a long time.”
She added, “I think about that and I think, like, ‘Oh, God, I don’t want to be with myself’ or, ‘I don’t want to do that.’ But then, sometimes, I see there are so many actor couples and you’re, like, ‘Wow, look at them. They must really laugh it up.’”
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