Jeff Baena, a writer and director married to Aubrey Plaza, has passed away at the age of 47, as confirmed by US.
Law enforcement sources informed TMZ that Baena's body was found by an assistant at a residence near Los Angeles around 10:30 a.m. local time on Friday, January 3.
He was declared deceased at the location. Authorities confirmed to the outlet that his death was a suicide.
Representatives for Baena have not yet responded to PEOPLE's request for a comment.
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Aubrey Plaza and Jeff Baena in June 2017.
Monica Schipper/FilmMagic Born and raised in Miami, Baena attended New York University's film school before relocating to Los Angeles to pursue his career in the entertainment industry.
Baena has over a dozen directing and film credits.
He is best known for co-writing the 2004 film *I Heart Huckabees*, which featured Jason Schwartzman, Jude Law, and Naomi Watts. Shortly after, he wrote and directed *Life After Beth*, a zombie comedy featuring Plaza, who is 40 years old.
In 2021, Baena created the anthology series *Cinema Toast*, which aired on Showtime and included Plaza's own directorial debut.
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| Jeff Baena and Aubrey Plaza in May 2016. |
Baena and Plaza began their romantic relationship in 2011. They maintained a high level of privacy regarding their relationship, never publicly announcing their engagement or marriage.
The public became aware that the couple had married in May 2021 when Plaza called Baena her "darling husband" in an Instagram post.
Her caption read, "So proud of my darling husband @jeffbaena for dreaming up another film that takes us to Italy to cause some more trouble."
A representative later confirmed to PEOPLE that the couple had gotten married.
If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide, please reach out to the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988, send a text with the word "STRENGTH" to the Crisis Text Line at 741741, or visit 988lifeline.org.