Aubrey Plaza and her husband, Jeff Baena, had been separated for four months before he was found dead by suicide.
According to a report from the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner-Coroner obtained by People on Wednesday, it was confirmed Plaza and Baena had separated in September 2024.
The report also disclosed that the screenwriter texted Plaza on the day he passed away.
Jeff Baena and Aubrey Plaza attend Lisa Edelstein’s Birthday Party at Private Residence on May 21, 2016 in Silverlake, CA. Patrick McMullan via Getty Images
He was found dead on January 3 at the age of 47.
The report added that Baena made “concerning remarks” to the “Parks and Recreation” actress in October that “prompted her to call a friend to perform a welfare check on her husband.”
Baena started therapy following the welfare check, per the report, which noted that the film director was “experiencing recent marital difficulties” with Plaza before his passing.
It stated that the “Agatha All Along” actress also received a text from her estranged husband on the morning of his death and noted that Plaza “knew her husband to be alive” when he sent her the message.
Baena sought therapy after Plaza prompted a welfare check on him in October. Mark Davis/Getty Images
A dog walker, whose name was redacted from the report, also told investigators that she arrived at Baena’s Los Angeles home around 10:25 a.m. on January 3 to walk his pet.
It was then that she said she discovered Baena’s body hanging from a staircase inside the home.
“She heard loud music from within the house, which was unusual,” the report also noted. “She yelled at [Baena] and received no response. [The dog walker] ran to retrieve the decedent’s dog and left the building to call 911.”
Baena was pronounced dead from suicide by hanging shortly thereafter.
Plaza and Baena married in 2021 after 10 years of dating. Instagram/@plazadeaubrey
No suicide note was found at the scene, but an investigator confirmed a cell phone was discovered near the staircase where the director’s body was found.
There were also no alcohol or drugs found in Baena’s system, per the report.
“This is an unimaginable tragedy,” Plaza and Baena’s family said in a joint statement after the news of his death.
Plaza and Baena’s family released a short joint statement in the wake of his passing. WireImage
“We are deeply grateful to everyone who has offered support,” they added. “Please respect our privacy during this time.”
The “Emily the Criminal” actress made her first public appearance since Baena’s death during the “Saturday Night Live” 50th anniversary special on February 16.
She honored her late husband by wearing a tie-dye shirt – a callback to the couple’s decision to wear tie-dye pajamas to their wedding ceremony.
The couple started dating in 2011 but didn’t tie the knot until 2021.
“Jeff got really into tie-dyeing during the quarantine,” Plaza explained during an appearance on “The Drew Barrymore Show” in December 2021. “So, I decided that Jeff and I were going to wear tie-dye pajamas that he had made for us.”
“The marriage was just like a joke that honestly went too far,” Plaza added regarding their nuptials. “We got married on a whim. Literally decided at around 5 p.m. and got married at 8:30.”
