Reese Witherspoon has emotionally reacted on social media to the death of Cheryl Strayed’s husband, documentary director Brian Lindstrom, from a rare progressive brain disease known as Progressive Supranuclear Palsy. His death comes just two weeks after his wife announced he was ill.
Strayed is the real person who inspired Witherspoon’s 2014 film “Wild” about Strayed’s transformative journey across a portion of the Pacific Crest Trail, for which Witherspoon received her second Oscar nomination. Witherspoon said she and Strayed developed a deep bond while collaborating on the movie.
GettyThe 57-year-old author went on her life-changing hike in 1995, and published her hit book “Strayed: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail,” in 2012.
On a post by Strayed sharing the news of her husband’s death, Witherspoon commented, “Brian was truly one of the greatest men I’ve ever known. He focused his attn on people in the margins who society forgets. Your love for each other was so profound.. a true inspiration. I am here for you all during this unbearable time of grief. I love you so much.” The Oscar winner finished her message with a heart and dove emoji.
Additionally, Witherspoon made a couple of posts for Lindstrom on her Instagram Stories. In one she wrote, “We love you Brian. Calling all the angels to carry you home.”
Her next post was a photo of herself posing with Strayed and Lindstrom.
Cheryl Strayed Announced Her Husband’s Death on May 15
In an Instagram post announcing Lindstrom’s passing, Strayed called the filmmaker “a stellar husband” and “the most magnificent dad.”
She also heartbreakingly described Lindstrom’s final moments, saying, “Brian Lindstrom died this morning the way he lived—with gentleness and courage, grace and gratitude for his beautiful life. Our children, Carver and Bobbi, and I held him as he took his last breath and we will hold him forever in our hearts.” She added that the family’s “endless love” for Lindstrom trumps their sorrow.
In another part of her statement, she shined a spotlight on Lindstrom’s filmmaking career, saying, “His work as a documentary filmmaker was dedicated to telling stories of people who, as he put it, ‘society puts an X through.’ He erased that X with his camera and his astonishing heart. He made films about incarcerated moms and their kids, about people with mental illness and substance use disorders, about teens living in homeless shelters, foster care, and detention centers, about people who were at the bottom and trying to climb up.”
Fellow author Elizabeth Gilbert, who wrote “Eat, Pray, Love” and inspired the Julia Roberts film of the same name, wrote to her, “Your perfect and broken heart is a devastating wonder to behold. I love you, brave friend. Forever.”
On April 30, Strayed announced her husband’s illness.
She said the “serious, fatal illness” was the reason for cancelling a scheduled writing workshop and a public appearance, and explained the cheerful podcast clips she’d been sharing were recorded in “happier times.”
Cheryl Strayed Said She ‘Never for a Second’ Expected Fame
In a joint interview with Reese Witherspoon to discuss “Wild,” Strayed said during her now-famous hike, she “never for a second” thought she’d one day be getting interviewed about her story.
Witherspoon said the book stood out to her for helping people “understand that you can forgive yourself for things that you’ve done in your life that seemed unforgivable,” and she hoped to “carry that message on through the film.”
Six months ago, Witherspoon lost another loved one, Laura Dern’s actress mother Diane Ladd, whom she called “my other mother.”
