Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal, stars of “When Harry Met Sally…” honor the memory of their friend and collaborator Rob Reiner and his wife, Michele Singer Reiner. The Reiners tragically passed away in their Los Angeles home on Sunday, December 14.
“It is with profound sorrow that we announce the tragic passing of Michele and Rob Reiner. We are heartbroken by this sudden loss, and we ask for privacy during this unbelievably difficult time,” their family said in a statement obtained by CBS News and other outlets.
Meg Ryan Thanks Reiner in Emotional Tribute
“Oh how we will miss this man⦔ wrote Meg Ryan in her tribute on Instagram from December 17.
“Thank you, Rob and Michelle, for the way you believe in true love, in fairy tales, and in laughter. Thank you for your faith in the best in people, and for your profound love of our country,” she continued.
Ryan concluded, “I have to believe that their story will not end with this impossible tragedy, that some good may come, some awareness raised⦠I donât know, but my guess is that they would want that to be hopeful and humane, to be something that brings us all to a greater understanding of one another and to some peace.”
Billy Crystal’s Shared Tribute to His ‘Passionate’ & ‘Brave’ Friend
Billy Crystal and his wife Janice Crystal along with Larry David, Albert Brooks and more issued a shared statement on Reiner’s passing on December 16.
“Going to the movies in a dark theater filled with strangers having a common experience, laughing, crying, screaming in fear, or watching an intense drama unfold is still an unforgettable thrill,” the statement begins, which was issued to the Associated Press. “Tell us a story audiences demand of us. Absorbing all he had learned from his father Carl and his mentor Norman Lear, Rob Reiner not only was a great comic actor, he became a master story teller. There is no other director who has his range. From comedy to drama to âmockumentaryâ to documentary he was always at the top of his game. He charmed audiences. They trusted him. They lined up to see his films.”
“His comedic touch was beyond compare, his love of getting the music of the dialogue just right, and his sharpening of the edge of a drama was simply elegant. For the actors, he loved them. For the writers he made them better. His greatest gift was freedom. If you had an idea, he listened, he brought you into the process. They always felt they were working as a team. To be in his hands as a film maker was a privilege but that is only part of his legacy.â
“Rob was also a passionate, brave citizen, who not only cared for this country he loved, he did everything he could to make it better and with his loving wife Michele, he had the perfect partner. Strong and determined, Michele and Rob Reiner devoted a great deal of their lives for the betterment of our fellow citizens… They were a special force together-dynamic, unselfish and inspiring. We were their friends, and we will miss them forever.”
The statement concludes, “There is a line from one of Robâs favorite films, Itâs a Wonderful Life, âEach manâs life touches so many other lives, and when he isnât around, he leaves an awful hole, doesnât he?â You have no idea.”
Crystal had a decades-long friendship with Reiner after they first met on set of classic sitcom “All In The Family” in 1975 when the two were cast as best friends.
Crystal had written a column for The Hollywood Reporter back in September 2016 about their friendship. He wrote, “It worked really well, and we said, ‘it feels right onstage, why donât we just continue this in our lives?’”
“We became the closest of friends. And when I moved out here, we just spent all kinds of time together.”
How Reiner’s Wife Influenced the Ending for ‘When Harry Met Sally…’
The landmark romantic comedy “When Harry Met Sally…” was directed by Reiner. The film follows Sally (Ryan) and Harry (Crystal) through years of their lives, as they initially meet at the end of college, get off on the wrong foot, and ponder if itâs possible for men and women to just be friends. The pair finally get together at the end during another iconic scene at a New Yearâs Eve party.
Reiner was single after his divorce from actress and director Penny Marshall in 1981, and it was his relationship status that inspired him to team-up with writer Nora Ephron for the film.
According to Daily Mail, Reiner and Ephron went into the project with a “true ending” for the movie, which would see Harry and Sally “seeing each other after years, talking and then walking away from each other.”
But during filming, Reiner met photographer Michele, and their relationship is what changed the film’s ending.
“I met my wife Michelle, who I’ve been married to now for 35 years, I met her while we were making the film and I changed the ending,” the filmmaker recalled.
The film received a significant award recognition, such as an Oscar nomination for Nora Ephron’s screenplay, Golden Globe nominations for stars Crystal and Ryan for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Musical/Comedy and Best Actress in a Motion Picture Musical/Comedy, respectively, and a win for Harry Connick Jr.’s soundtrack at the Grammy.
Reiner Hilariously Reflects on the Deli Scene in the 1989 Rom-Com
In 2025, Reiner appeared on CBSâs “60 Minutes” where he reflected on filming the iconic Katz’s Deli scene between Ryan and Crystal in front of his mother.
“First couple of times, she didnât do it full out,” Reiner said, referring to Ryanâs famous performance.
Reiner cast his mother, Estelle Reiner, as the woman sitting nearby Sally and Harry. She delivers the famous punchline, “Iâll have what sheâs having.”
The “Stand by Me” director recalled that in order to tell Ryan what he wanted from her performance, he demonstrated it himself. “I sat across from Billy. And I acted it for her.⦠And Iâm pounding the table, ‘Yes! Yes! Yes!’” Then he realized, “Thereâs my mother over there.”
Crystal said of the punchline in his 2016 THR column, “itâs those moments that make movies so spectacular: You set up the joke in September, and you donât hear the punch line until May. We just grabbed each otherâs hands because we knew something exciting was about to happen with this movie.”
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