Aubrey Plaza Says Grief Feels Like an ‘Ocean of Awfulness’ After Jeff Baena’s Death

Actress Aubrey Plaza is sharing how life has been since the death of her husband, filmmaker Jeff Baena.

Plaza, known for The White Lotus and Parks and Recreation, appeared on Amy Poehler’s podcast Good Hang. Poehler, her close friend and former co-star, gently asked how she was doing.

Baena, who was a writer and director, died by suicide in January at the age of 47. He was known for co-writing the 2004 movie I Heart Huckabees and worked with Plaza on several projects, including Life After Beth (2014), Cinema Toast (2021), and Spin Me Round (2022).

When Poehler asked how she was feeling, Plaza said:
“In this moment, I feel happy to be with you. I’m here, I’m functioning, and I’m grateful to be moving through the world. I think I’m okay, but it’s a daily struggle.”

Plaza then described her grief using the movie The Gorge, which stars Miles Teller and Anya Taylor-Joy. She explained that in the film, there’s a gorge filled with monsters between two cliffs. To her, grief feels like that gorge—dark, scary, and always present.

She compared her feelings to a “giant ocean of awfulness” that is always there beside her. Sometimes she wants to “dive into it,” sometimes she just stares at it, and other times she tries to avoid it—but it never goes away.

Plaza and Baena had been together since 2011. In 2021, she revealed on social media that they had gotten married.