Jake Johnson shared his conflicting feelings after filmmaker and friend Jeff Baena‘s death.
“I love you Jeff,” Johnson, 46, wrote via Instagram on Wednesday, January 8. “Hate your last move. But I still love you.”
The social media post included a photo of Johnson and Baena, who Us Weekly confirmed died by suicide on Friday, January 3, at age 47. Baena, who was married to actress Aubrey Plaza, was known for projects such as I Heart Huckabees, Life After Beth, The Little Hours, Horse Girl and Spin Me Round.
Plaza, 40, broke her silence on Baena’s death days later in a statement.
Related: Aubrey Plaza and Late Husband Jeff Baena’s Relationship Timeline
Aubrey Plaza and Jeff Baena were together for over a decade ahead of his death in 2025. The pair started dating in 2011 but never confirmed exactly when they met or when their love story began. Plaza and the Horse Girl director have collaborated on films including Life After Beth and Joshy in 2016 and […]
“This is an unimaginable tragedy,” her rep said in a Monday, January 6, statement to Us on behalf of Plaza and family members. “We are deeply grateful to everyone who has offered support. Please respect our privacy during this time.”
Plaza and Baena started dating in 2011, going on to collaborate on several projects.
“My first movie was a big learning experience on all fronts, and so working with her was a benefit because we have a shorthand and a close relationship,” Baena said of Plaza in an August 2022 interview with Newsweek. “As I’ve made more and more stuff, I’ve come to appreciate everything that she brings.”
Baena praised his wife’s commitment to her work, adding, “She’s insanely talented and so smart and obviously really good at producing. And she’s writing. There are very few people who can wear as many hats as her, as elegantly as she does.”
Plaza received an outpour of support after Baena’s death. His friend and longtime collaborator Adam Pally shared an emotional Instagram statement on Sunday, January 5, which read, “He was a talented director with impeccable taste and vision, he was a connector of people, a fosterer of possibility, the guy who knows where the best restaurant was no matter where you were. An overly gracious host with an almost disturbing open door policy, a film encyclopedia, and most importantly to me a friend.”
Pally, 42, who worked with Baena on Life After Beth, Joshy and The Little Hours, recalled how the late filmmaker “strove for truth” and that “nothing could sound, look or feel inauthentic” because it was a “direct representation” of how authentic Baena was.
Related: Celebrities Voice Support for Aubrey Plaza After Husband’s Death
Celebrities are speaking out and voicing their heartbreak and support for Aubrey Plaza following the untimely passing of her husband, Jeff Baena. “No words can touch this painful time,” actress Selma Blair wrote on Plaza’s most recent Instagram post on Saturday, January 4. “Only love and strength and support from everyone. I am so sorry.” […]
“You never worried that Jeff wasn’t telling you the way it is. ‘Cause Jeff’s virtue was telling you the way it was,” Pally continued. “My heart breaks for my friend Aubrey and the Baena family and for all of us who spent time on his sets or at his house or in his orbit. Thanks for believing in me Jeff, may your memory be a blessing.”
In the comments section, Jeff’s brother, Brad Baena, replied, “I am broken.”
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