Sebastián Lelio death, Digi Mart USA News (Santiago, Chile): Sebastián Lelio, one of the most important Chilean and Latin American directors on the international stage and director of A Fantastic Woman, which won the Oscar in 2018, has died at age 52. Reports of his death emerged on Friday, November 6.
According to several media outlets, the lifeless body of the director was found at his home in Las Condes, in Santiago, the Chilean capital. His family said his death was due to health reasons that have not been specified so far.
“We are going through a moment of great pain, and his memory will remain with us forever. He was a beautiful person who contributed to Chilean culture in great moments of its history,” the family said in a statement.
Lelio was born in March 1974 in Mendoza, Argentina. When he was 2 years old, his family moved to Chile, where he grew up and completed his studies at the Chilean Film School.
After several short films, he made his feature debut with The Holy Family in 2005, which established a precise narrative style about the complexity of human relationships, always shaped by social and ideological conflicts.
He went on to build much of his career in Chilean cinema with films such as Christmas, The Year of the Tiger and Gloria. Gloria became one of his first major international successes after its screening at the Berlinale.
A Fantastic Woman, however, defined his career. The film tells the story of a trans woman who, after the death of her partner, faces rejection and the pain of grief.
In 2018, it became the first Chilean production to win the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.
After A Fantastic Woman, Lelio made an even larger leap onto the international stage with Disobedience, starring Rachel McAdams and Rachel Weisz, followed by Gloria Bell, with Julianne Moore, and The Wonder, starring Florence Pugh. His most recent film was the Chilean musical La ola, released in 2025.
