Film director Rob Reiner, celebrated for classics including When Harry Met Sally, Misery, Stand By Me, A Few Good Men, The Princess Bride and This Is Spinal Tap, has died aged 78 in what police are treating as an apparent homicide. His wife, photographer Michele Singer Reiner, 68, was also found dead at their Brentwood home in Los Angeles.
Authorities were called on Sunday afternoon following a medical aid request to the Los Angeles Fire Department. The bodies of the couple were discovered inside the property.
Detectives from the Los Angeles Police Department’s robbery homicide division later confirmed they were investigating the deaths as an apparent homicide. Reports from TMZ and People suggested the pair had suffered wounds consistent with a knife attack.
A spokesperson for the Reiner family confirmed the deaths on Sunday evening. “It is with profound sorrow that we announce the tragic passing of Michele and Rob Reiner,” the statement read. “We are heartbroken by this sudden loss, and we ask for privacy during this unbelievably difficult time.”
At a press conference, LAPD chief detective Alan Hamilton said the investigation was ongoing. “At this time, the LAPD is not seeking anyone as a suspect or as a person of interest … and we will not be doing that until we conduct our investigation and we move forward,” he said.
He added that family members would be interviewed but no one had been detained or questioned as a suspect.
Reiner married Michele Singer in 1989 after meeting her during the filming of When Harry Met Sally. Their romance inspired him to change the film’s original ending so that Harry and Sally ended up together.
Born in the Bronx in 1947, Reiner was the son of comic actor Carl Reiner and singer Estelle Rebost. He first found fame in the 1970s as Michael “Meathead” Stivic in All in the Family, winning two Emmy Awards and earning five Golden Globe nominations.
His directorial debut came in 1984 with the mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap. A string of acclaimed films followed, including Stand By Me (1986), The Princess Bride (1987), When Harry Met Sally (1989), Misery (1990) and A Few Good Men (1992), which was nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards. He later directed The American President (1995), The Bucket List (2007) and his final film, Spinal Tap II: The End Continues (2025).
Reiner also acted in numerous films and television series, appearing in Sleepless in Seattle, Postcards From the Edge, The First Wives Club, The Wolf of Wall Street, New Girl and The Bear. He frequently played himself in comedies such as 30 Rock, The Simpsons, Hannah Montana, The Larry Sanders Show and Curb Your Enthusiasm.
As co-founder of Castle Rock Entertainment, Reiner helped produce hits including The Shawshank Redemption, Seinfeld, In the Line of Fire, City Slickers and Miss Congeniality. He later lamented the difficulty of securing funding for smaller films, telling The Guardian in 2018 that studios were focused on blockbuster profits rather than storytelling.
Beyond film, Reiner was a prominent political activist. He co-founded the American Foundation for Equal Rights, which successfully challenged California’s ban on same-sex marriage, and campaigned against smoking. He considered running for governor of California in 2006 but ultimately decided against it.
Friends and colleagues, including Billy Crystal and Larry David, were reported to have gathered at the scene following news of the deaths.
The couple are survived by their three children, Jake, Nick and Romy. Reiner was also the adoptive father of actor Tracy Reiner, daughter of his first wife, Penny Marshall, who died in 2018.
Messages to Reiner’s representatives were not immediately returned.
