Actress Aubrey Plaza made her first public appearance since her husband, Jeff Baena, tragically died by suicide on January 3, 2025. Plaza was one of the many stars that joined a three-hour Saturday Night Live special on February 16, celebrating 50 years of the show.
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While wearing a tie-dye shirt, she briefly appeared and introduced Miley Cyrus and Brittany Howard. Both singers sang "Nothing Compares 2 U," a song by the late Sinéad O'Connor. And while her first public appearance at the show certainly made the news in itself, her outfit stole the show. It is a subtle albeit significant and heartwarming tribute to her late husband.
A tie-dye shirt means a lot to Aubrey Plaza and Jeff Baena, as they both used to wear this specific type of clothing. Plaza talked about this back in 2021 while being interviewed on The Drew Barrymore Show.
"Jeff got really into tie-dyeing during the quarantine," Plaza said, reported by the New York Post. "So, I decided that Jeff and I were going to wear tie-dye pajamas that he had made for us."
Tragic Passing
Jeff Baena was found dead at his home in Los Angeles on January 3. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner determined that he had died by suicide. Three days after the tragic passing of Baena, Plaza broke her silence by issuing a joint statement with Baena's family.
"This is an unimaginable tragedy," they wrote in a statement. "We are deeply grateful to everyone who has offered support. Please respect our privacy during this time."
Just two days after Baena's death, Aubrey Plaza was scheduled to present an award at the 2025 Golden Globes. However, understandably, she didn't attend the awards ceremony. That said, The Brutalist director Brady Corbet, honored Jeff Baena and mentioned Plaza at the end of his Best Director award acceptance speech.
"Tonight my heart is with Aubrey Plaza and Jeff's family," Corbet said.
Aubrey Plaza and Jeff Baena started dating back in 2011 and they collaborated on several projects, including Jeff Baena's zombie comedy film, Life After Beth. Ten years later, the couple married in secret, with Plaza nonchalantly revealing the news on Instagram.
"So proud of my darling husband Jeff Baena for dreaming up another film that takes us to Italia to cause some more trouble," Plaza wrote.
