Actress Aubrey Plaza had separated from Hollywood director husband Jeff Baena months before he died

Baena died by suicide on January 3, aged 47. A statement on the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s website said that Baena was pronounced dead at 10.39am on that day at a home close to the Fern Dell Nature Trail, near the Hollywood Hills and Los Feliz areas.

In the days that followed, Plaza and Baena’s family described his death as an “unimaginable tragedy”. A statement from Plaza and the Baena/Stern family given to the PA news agency said: “ “This is an unimaginable tragedy. We are deeply grateful to everyone who has offered support. Please respect our privacy during this time.”

A report from Philip Kim, Los Angeles County Coroner Investigator, which has been obtained by People, has now revealed that the celebrity couple actually separated in September 2024. They had been together since around 2014 and had married in 2021.

In October, Baena made "concerning remarks" to the 40-year-old actress that "prompted her to call a friend to perform a welfare check on her husband,” the publication reported. He subsequently started attending therapy sessions. The report added: “According to (an unnamed person) Baena did not have any previous suicide attempts. He had a history of difficulty sleeping.”

The court documents also noted that the screenwriter had been "experiencing recent marital difficulties" with the Hollywood star. The examiner said Plaza “last knew her husband to be alive when he sent her a text message” on the morning of January 3, the date of his death.

Plaza and Baena had made a concerted effort to keep their relationship out of the spotlight. However, the actress had discussed their romance in a 2019 interview with People. At the time, she said: "I think that one of the great things about our careers is that we are forced to be independent, take little breaks, go off and do our things and come back." She said she liked that their relationship dynamic was constantly changing, stating that "nothing is ever the same".

She added: "It’s kind of fun. Nothing is ever the same. You don’t want to spend too much time a part. But I think that there’s a way that it can work and there’s a balance in that."

Baena worked with Parks And Recreation star Plaza on the 2014 horror film Life After Beth and 2017 historical comedy The Little Hours. The director and screenwriter was found by a dog walker at a home, with the cause of his death determined as hanging.

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