In my 2014 LATF USA News interview with Rob Reiner, he concluded with “Romance is the most important subject that we have. Love makes the world go round.”
The King of Romantic Comedy had a true passion for capturing the important subject on the silver screen. We are devastated to report on his tragic passing, along with the death of his wife over a decade later. According to reports, Reiner and his wife, Michele Singer Reiner, were found dead inside their Brentwood, Los Angeles home on Sunday afternoon (December 14th, 2025.
Coincidentally, my interview with Reiner was for his film “And So It Goes” starring Diane Keaton, who also recently passed.
In his LATF interview, Reiner spoke with refreshing clarity about why romantic stories mattered so deeply to him as a director. Reiner didn’t see romantic comedy as a formula or a genre gimmick — he saw it as a reflection of the human journey we all undertake, from the first twinges of young affection to the more nuanced rediscovery of love later in life.
Reiner’s filmography is one of the most versatile and beloved in modern cinema. He directed era-defining romantic classics including When Harry Met Sally…, widely regarded as one of the greatest romantic comedies of all time, The Sure Thing, The Princess Bride, and later And So It Goes, each capturing love at different stages of life with humor and emotional honesty. Beyond romance, Reiner demonstrated remarkable range with films like Stand by Me, This Is Spinal Tap, Misery, and A Few Good Men, proving his ability to move seamlessly between heart, satire, suspense, and drama. Few directors managed to shape so many cultural touchstones across genres, yet it was his understanding of relationships — romantic, platonic, and human — that tied his body of work together and cemented his legacy.
When asked why he gravitated toward stories of love and friendship, Reiner simply said it was “the thing we all think about more than anything.” That perspective shaped a body of work that ranged from youthful infatuation to the beautiful, unexpected bonds formed later in life. In his hands, romantic comedy wasn’t lightweight fluff — it was a sincere exploration of how we grow, hurt, laugh, learn and ultimately find one another.
This emotional depth is what made his films resonate so profoundly. He could portray the awkward vulnerability of early love, the bittersweet edges of missed timing, and the enduring joy of rediscovered connection with equal empathy. His view of relationships was inclusive and human: the search for love, in all its permutations, was a dance between two people that revealed more about who they were and what they needed from the world.
Reiner’s work was never about perfect fairy tales, but rather about real people with real fears and real hopes. Perhaps Reiner was a also a strong influence on Ed Burns, who we recently spoke with about capturing the reality of love and life on screen. Reiner paved the way for many in the genre.
Reiner believed that love stories, whether set in bustling cities or small towns, spoke to something essential inside us all — a desire to be known, understood, and accepted.
Rob Reiner didn’t just direct beloved romantic films; he gave millions of people permission to believe in connection, to laugh at its awkwardness, and to cherish its moments of unexpected joy.
