Chile has declared two days of official mourning for Sebastián Lelio, the Oscar-winning film director who died on Friday 6 November 2026, as we reported on Friday. The decree covers Saturday 7 and Sunday 8 November 2026, and Chile’s Ministry of Cultures, Arts and Heritage, the government body that supports the arts, announced it in a communiqué.
Lelio was 52, and his film A Fantastic Woman (Una mujer fantástica) won the 2018 Oscar for best foreign-language film. It was the first Chilean film to win in that category.
American audiences know him for English-language films with stars such as Rachel Weisz, Rachel McAdams and Florence Pugh. The government has marked his death with formal mourning.
- Chile decreed two days of official mourning, 7 and 8 November 2026, for Oscar-winning director Sebastián Lelio, 52.
- Lelio died on Friday 6 November 2026; his family said it was for health reasons.
- A prosecutor ordered inquiries into the circumstances; no cause of death has been published.
- Public wake at the Cineteca Nacional, Santiago, on 7 and 8 November. As of 7 November 2026, 17:30 GMT.
What We Know
Lelio’s partner, the actress Amalia Kassai, shared the news on Instagram on behalf of the family. The family said he died for health reasons.
Reports place his home in Las Condes, a district of Santiago. We have not seen a confirmed place of death.
In its communiqué, the ministry said, in our translation, that his cinema portrayed identity, dignity, individual freedom and diversity with sensitivity. Culture Minister Francisco Undurraga also announced the mourning on social media.
He also sent condolences to Lelio’s family, friends and the whole audiovisual community, the country’s film and television workers. Official mourning, or duelo oficial, means the national flag flies at half-mast on public buildings and at the Armed Forces and Carabineros, Chile’s national police.
Government celebrations are suspended. It is not a public holiday, and it does not require shows or entertainment to stop.
It is lighter than national mourning, which lasts three or more days and suspends public entertainment. The wake, known in Spanish as a velorio, is open to the public at the Cineteca Nacional de Chile, a film archive and cinema.
It sits inside the Centro Cultural La Moneda, a cultural centre in central Santiago, and capacity is limited. According to the family, the wake runs on Saturday 7 November from 16:30 to 19:30 and on Sunday 8 November from 10:00 to 19:30, Chile time.
Chile is three hours behind GMT, so Saturday’s opening is 19:30 GMT.The Fiscalía Metropolitana Oriente, the prosecutor’s office for eastern Santiago, ordered investigative steps to clarify the circumstances of his death.
Lelio’s films include Gloria (2013), A Fantastic Woman (2017) and Disobedience (2017), with Rachel Weisz and Rachel McAdams. They also include The Wonder (El prodigio, 2022), with Florence Pugh, and La ola (2025).
He was shooting Poeta chileno (Chilean Poet), an adaptation of a novel by the Chilean novelist Alejandro Zambra. Its future has not been announced.
What Is Not Known
The cause of his death has not been made public, and we have seen no autopsy result. We have also seen no allegation of wrongdoing from anyone.
We do not know what the investigators will conclude, and we will not speculate. Any findings would come from the prosecutor’s office.
No funeral or burial details have been announced. The wake is the only public event named so far.
We have seen no statement on whether Poeta chileno will be finished, delayed or shelved.
What It Means for US Readers
Many Americans know Lelio’s work through Disobedience and The Wonder, which starred Rachel Weisz, Rachel McAdams and Florence Pugh. His Oscar for A Fantastic Woman made him one of the best-known Chilean filmmakers abroad.
Official mourning is a formal act of state, and the government has chosen to mark his death in that way. Visitors in Chile this weekend should note that the mourning is not a holiday, so shows and entertainment are not suspended.
Flags will fly at half-mast on public buildings. We will report the wake arrangements and any findings once they are public, in our Chile coverage.
For now, the country is marking the loss of one of its best-known filmmakers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was Sebastián Lelio?
He was a Chilean film director, aged 52, whose film A Fantastic Woman won the 2018 Oscar for best foreign-language film, the first Chilean film to win in that category. He also directed Gloria, Disobedience and The Wonder.
What does official mourning mean in Chile?
The national flag flies at half-mast on public buildings and at the Armed Forces and Carabineros, and government celebrations are suspended. It is not a public holiday, and shows and entertainment are not suspended.
How did Sebastián Lelio die?
His family said he died for health reasons. The cause has not been made public, and a prosecutor ordered investigative steps to clarify the circumstances of his death.
Where will the wake be held?
At the Cineteca Nacional de Chile, inside the Centro Cultural La Moneda in central Santiago, on Saturday 7 November from 16:30 to 19:30 and Sunday 8 November from 10:00 to 19:30, Chile time. Funeral details have not been announced.
Sources: Chile’s Ministry of Cultures, Arts and Heritage communiqué, 7 November 2026; Lelio family statements, 6 and 7 November 2026; Fiscalía Metropolitana Oriente.
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error · Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief