During the 2025 Golden Globe Awards, a very special and sentimental moment came as Brady Corbet took a moment to share his love and condolences with the talented Aubrey Plaza after her husband, talented filmmaker Jeff Baena, died. With deeply emotional words, Corbet moved the audience and showed the great impact Baena had on the world of entertainment and those close to him. It wasn’t just a tribute to Baena’s creative legacy but also an emotive support gesture to Plaza in the face of such sorrow from the loss of her partner.
Baena was an author, screenwriter, and film director who died on January 3, 2025, when he was 49 years old. Baena’s death was a shock to the world of films since he was on good terms with other filmmakers, actors, and his audience. Baena, over the years, had cut a singular swath through Hollywood, creating quirky, often dark comedic projects that reflected his sharp wit and deep love for film. News of his death sent collaborators and admirers who enjoyed working with or simply loved his work, including Corbet, who worked alongside him on multiple occasions, with heavy hearts.
Brady Corbet, himself an actor who came into prominence for uncompromising, maverick directors, took time out during his speech to remember Baena during this highly respected event. While taking up the Golden Globe Award for Best Director for the movie The Brutalist, Corbet showed his respects for the recent demise of Baena. His voice cracked with emotion as he spoke about Baena, his colleague and a friend, his creative partner. “Jeff was one of those very few souls that was working in this business who was able to create work both firmly attached to the ground while, at the same time, whimsical and darkly comic and insightful, even,” he said. His spirit will live on in every frame he created, and I am deeply honored to have known him.”
The tribute became even more poignant as Corbet turned to Plaza, who was seated in the audience visibly moved by the moment. “Aubrey, I want to send my love to you during this incredibly difficult time,” Corbet continued, his eyes meeting Plaza’s in the crowd. “Jeff was one of the kindest, most talented people I’ve had the privilege of working with. You both were a force in this industry, and I know the world is a lesser place without him.” Plaza, who has kept her personal life mostly private, had been married to Baena since 2021. The deep bond between the two was well-documented, and their professional collaboration on numerous projects, including Life After Beth, The Little Hours, and Spin Me Round, was a testament to their shared love for filmmaking and storytelling.
Tributes from those working with him-or, for the most part, influenced by him-rolled in right from all parts of the film world. Actors and producers, along with directors, commemorated Baena’s distinctive voice in cinema-one generally noisily irreverent, intellectually provocative, and truly human. With Baena’s death, the world lost not only a great director but also a mentor and friend to many. He had a great influence on the works of many other artists, with whom he shared a close affinity. Many talked about his abilities to draw the best out of whomever he worked with.
The pain of losing her husband must have been overwhelming for Plaza. The two, who first met in 2011, had a close-knit and very private relationship. Despite being in the public eye, they kept much of their life together out of the media’s scrutiny. Plaza often spoke about how much she admired Baena’s work and the creative projects they shared. It had been a cornerstone of her personal and professional life. In interviews, Plaza often talked about the pleasure of working with her husband on a range of projects, how their bond wasn’t limited to romance but rather also included the companionship of mutual artistic expression. The death of Baena did raise several questions about what would happen with his uncompleted works.
Baena had in his pipeline several creative projects he was working on at the time of his death, including the development of new ideas for film and television. His work was well-appreciated, and his following awaited his next creative delivery. Now, Baena’s untimely death leads many to question what might have been. The legacy he leaves, however, remains very real in films finished and projects regarding television. His films were sharp-witted, absurd at times, and always an honest portrayal of relationships-relationships filled with the messiness of love and loss, the fallibility of humanity. Among the sadness of Baena’s death, there was a moment of healing with the Golden Globes tribute from Corbet.
In his speech, Corbet didn’t just remember Baena but also reached out to Plaza. His words of solidarity underlined the sense of cohesion that pervades the film community-undeniably in times of hardship. This Golden Globes moment was an extremely rare glimpse into the more personalized side of such an industry-just to remind one that behind all that glitz and glamour, real human connections and emotions are involved. Aubrey Plaza was equally graceful in her response.
Though she did not take to the stage to make any speech that night, a tearful stare and brief wiping of one falling tear captured in quick snaps how she felt about what Corbet had to say about her. Plaza, after the Golden Globes, went on to thank all friends, colleagues, and fans via social media who had come out to pour their goodwill upon her. “I am so grateful for the love that is surrounding me,” she wrote in a tearful Instagram post. “Jeff was my rock, and I know that his light will continue to shine through all the people who loved him. Thank you to everyone who has shown kindness during this time.” The pain of loss will always stay, but for sure Plaza, along with all the people who knew Baena, will carry on his creative spirit. Baena’s work will keep being celebrated; his films will keep being analyzed; his voice remembered for years to come. For Plaza, meanwhile, there can be little doubt that she will take his memory into her next chapters, alive through the work they made together.
While the 2025 Golden Globe Awards could have been a night of celebration for many, it also turned into a night to remember how connected some of us get through art—and how important it is to hold up our people through thick and thin.
