“Wild” author Cheryl Strayed announces death of husband: 'We do not know how we will live without him'

Kathleen PerriconeFri, May 15, 2026 at 9:25 PM UTC

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Brian Lindstrom and Cheryl Strayed
Credit: Cheryl Strayed/instagramKey Points -

Wild author announced the death of her husband, documentary filmmaker Brian Lindstrom, on Friday, May 15.

Lindstrom passed after a brief battle with Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, "a rare neurological disorder that affects body movements, walking and balance, and eye movements."

"He was a stellar husband. He was the most magnificent dad," Strayed wrote in an Instagram tribute.

Two weeks after Cheryl Strayed announced her husband Brian Lindstrom had been diagnosed with a “fatal illness,” the filmmaker has died. He was 65.

"Our children, Carver and Bobbi, and I held him as he took his last breath and we will hold him forever in our hearts," the Wild author shared in an Instagram post on May 15. "The only thing more immense than our sorrow that Progressive Supranuclear Palsy took our beloved Brian from us is the endless love we have for him."

According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP) is "a rare neurological disorder that affects body movements, walking and balance, and eye movements." The frontotemporal disorder, which has symptoms similar to Parkinon's disease, is caused by "damage to nerve cells in areas of the brain that control thinking and body movements."

In her tribute, Strayed detailed Lindstrom’s “beautiful life” as a husband, father, and documentary filmmaker.

"What tremendous luck it was to be his partner for more than thirty years," she wrote. "We loved each other and our kids with deep devotion and true delight. He was a stellar husband. He was the most magnificent dad. He was a man whose every word and deed was driven by kindness, compassion, and generosity. He saw the goodness in everyone. He believed that we are all sacred and redeemable."

In his professional life, Lindstrom was dedicated to telling stories about the people who "society puts an X through," as he put it.

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Cheryl Strayed with her husband Brian Lindstrom
Credit: Cheryl Strayed/instagram

"He erased that X with his camera and his astonishing heart," said Strayed. "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. He showed them to us so we'd see what he saw: that every one of us is deserving of love and respect; mercy and honor."

Lindstrom's last project was Lost Angel: The Genius of Judee Sill, the story of the folk-rock icon featuring interviews with Linda Ronstadt, Jackson Browne, David Crosby, and Graham Nash.

But his greatest legacy, noted Strayed, is their two children, son Carver and daughter Bobbi, "who embody everything good and true about their father. Their extraordinary grace, courage, and fortitude during this harrowing time was unfaltering and grounded in the undying love Brian poured into them every day of their lives."

The author canceled all appearances and workshops on April 30 upon her husband's diagnosis.

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"We do not know how we will live without him," Strayed admitted. "We're utterly bereft. We can only walk this dark path and search for the beauty Brian knew was there. It will be his eternal light that guides us."

on Entertainment Weekly

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”