Oscar-Winning ‘A Fantastic Woman’ Director Sebastián Lelio Has Died
Sebastián Lelio built his reputation on stories about women pushing against the world around them. Across his filmography, Lelio repeatedly centered women navigating grief, desire, discrimination and the expectations imposed on their lives. His career stretched from Chilean arthouse cinema to English-language dramas with major stars.
Lelio was born in 1974 in Mendoza, Argentina, and grew up in Chile from the age of 2, when his parents separated. He studied film at the Escuela de Cine de Chile, made his feature debut with ‘La Sagrada Familia’, and followed it with ‘Navidad’ and ‘El Año del Tigre’. Those early films set the stage for a breakthrough that would eventually reach Hollywood.
Now the film world is mourning his loss. Lelio died in Santiago on Friday at the age of 52, according to his family. Chilean media reported that he was found dead at his home in Las Condes, a district in eastern Santiago, and his family cited health reasons without naming a specific illness. Prosecutors said they were investigating the exact cause of his death.
His partner, Amalia Kassai, announced the news on Instagram and said the family was going through a very painful time. She added that his memory would remain with them forever. The family requested privacy as relatives mourned.
Lelio first gained recognition for his 2013 film ‘Gloria’, whose lead actor Paulina García received the Silver Bear for Best Actress at the Berlin International Film Festival. After its success, he moved to Berlin and opened a bar named after the film. It was later remade in English as ‘Gloria Bell’, starring Julianne Moore alongside John Turturro.
The defining moment of his career came with ‘A Fantastic Woman’. The drama, which returned him to the Berlinale in 2017, follows a transgender woman, played by Daniela Vega, in her struggle to live fully and with dignity. It also won the Teddy Award for Best Feature Film in Berlin, and its success put Vega on the international map.
The film won the Oscar for best foreign language film, and it sparked a debate that helped change the law in Chile, allowing people to legally change their gender. It was the first Chilean film to win that honor. The win reached well beyond the awards circuit.
That same year, Lelio also directed ‘Disobedience’, a Hasidic lesbian romance starring Rachel McAdams and Rachel Weisz, which helped bring him to international prominence. His international career also included a collaboration with Florence Pugh on ‘The Wonder’. He later directed an episode of the anthology series ‘Homemade’ in 2020.
His films found audiences beyond the festival circuit as well. ‘Gloria Bell’ grossed about $5.6 million at the US box office, while ‘Disobedience’ earned roughly $3.5 million. On Rotten Tomatoes, ‘Gloria’ holds a 100% critics score, ‘A Fantastic Woman’ sits at 94% and ‘The Wonder’ at 85%.
Lelio’s final completed feature was ‘The Wave’, a protest musical that premiered at Cannes in 2025 and starred Kassai. He had also been working on an adaptation of Alejandro Zambra’s novel ‘The Chilean Poet’ and was set to direct ‘Voyagers’, with Andrew Garfield as Carl Sagan and Daisy Edgar-Jones as Ann Druyan. It is not yet clear what will happen to those projects.
Sebastián Lelio leaves behind a filmography small in size but large in influence, and a country that saw one of its own win its first Oscar for a film. For many viewers, his work will remain a reminder of how powerful humane, character-driven storytelling can be.
Which Sebastián Lelio film will you revisit first to remember his legacy? Share your thoughts in the comments.
