A naked man was found dead in the waters off Malibu on Wednesday afternoon as the celebrity enclave simultaneously grappled with storm damage that forced dozens of residents from their homes.
Los Angeles County Fire Department crews responded to the beach just north of Malibu Lagoon around 3 p.m. After receiving reports of a body in the water, according to authorities. Firefighters pulled the unclothed man from the surf and paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has opened a homicide investigation into the death. Authorities have not yet identified the deceased man, and they said there was no immediate indication of foul play.
Aerial footage from the beach showed sheriff’s deputies and firefighters gathered near a large canopy erected over the man’s body as investigators worked the scene.
The grim discovery came as Malibu’s ultra-wealthy coastal community faced a separate crisis that has turned parts of the star-studded enclave into an evacuation zone. A massive sinkhole ripped through Sea Level Drive, a private road running alongside famed Broad Beach, prompting mandatory evacuation orders for 31 properties.
The collapse left residents stranded and severed emergency access along the road, which serves as the sole entry and exit point for the multimillion-dollar homes. The city declared a local emergency as crews assessed the damage.
Nicolas Cage’s $10.5 million cliff-top mansion now sits perilously close to the gaping crater. The Oscar winner purchased the four-level, 3,900-square-foot oceanfront property in 2024. The home’s precarious position beside the sinkhole has drawn particular attention as the enclave confronts the ongoing threat.
Broad Beach has long served as a playground for Hollywood’s elite. Current residents of the stretch include Pierce Brosnan, Dustin Hoffman, Ray Romano, Danny DeVito, Valerie Bertinelli and Mindy Kaling, among others. The sinkhole has transformed the exclusive coastline into a hazard zone for some of entertainment’s biggest names.
The city continues preparing for additional severe weather this winter, including potential strong storms, high surf, heavy rain, mudslides and coastal erosion linked to forecast El Niño conditions. The dual emergencies—the unexplained death and the infrastructure collapse—have placed unusual strain on the coastal community’s first responders.
The Sheriff’s Department has not released additional details about the deceased man or the circumstances that led to his body being found naked in the water. The homicide investigation remains active despite the absence of clear signs of foul play.
The evacuation order affecting Cage’s property and 30 other parcels remains in effect as engineers evaluate the stability of Sea Level Drive and the surrounding cliff face. The road’s single-point access has complicated both resident relocation and emergency response to the area.
City officials have not provided a timeline for when evacuated residents might return to their homes.
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