Actress Aubrey Plaza is expecting her first child with partner Christopher Abbott, marking a significant personal milestone over a year after the death of her husband, Jeff Baena. The news, confirmed by Plaza's representative to People, comes as the 41-year-old star navigates a new phase of life following profound loss.
Plaza and Abbott, 40, have maintained a private relationship despite their extensive professional collaborations. The pair starred together in the 2020 film Black Bear and the 2023 off-Broadway revival of Danny and the Deep Blue Sea. While they had not publicly confirmed their romance, their creative partnership has now blossomed into this personal journey.
"Overall, I'm here and I'm functioning," Plaza shared on former co-star Amy Poehler's Good Hang podcast in August, reflecting on her grief. "I feel really grateful to be moving through the world. I think I'm OK, but it's a daily struggle, obviously."
Plaza poignantly described her experience with loss, comparing it to the imagery in the 2025 film The Gorge: "There's like a cliff on one side and there's a cliff on the other side, then there's gorge in between. Where at all times there's like a giant ocean of awfulness, that's right there and I can see it. Sometimes I just want to dive into it, and just like be in it. Then sometimes I just look at it, and sometimes I try to get away from it. But, it's always there."
Baena passed away in January 2025, with the couple having been separated since September 2024 after three years of marriage. Plaza and Baena collaborated on several films including Life After Beth (2014) and The Little Hours (2017).
As Plaza prepares for motherhood, she brings experience from her work as a children's author. She published The Legend of the Christmas Witch in 2021 and its sequel The Return of the Christmas Witch in 2022. The actress has previously shared how she brings the character to life for friends' children during the holidays.
"Basically, I have my friends sign up for slots on Christmas morning if they have kids," Plaza explained on The Drew Barrymore Show in October. "I show up when they're opening their presents around 7:30 in the morning. Then I try to steal their presents, and so it adds this element of fright on Christmas morning—which kids love."
This pregnancy represents both a new beginning and a continuation of Plaza's creative spirit as she balances her acting career, literary pursuits, and now impending motherhood.