Princess Bride Director Rob Reiner Dead at 78

A Few Good Men, This Is Spinal Tap, and The Princess Bride director Rob Reiner has been found deceased in his Brentwood, Los Angeles home, along with his wife, Michele. He was 78. CNN has reported that the LAPD is investigating the incident as an apparent homicide.

A spokesperson for the Reiner family has confirmed their deaths and has requested privacy for the family during this tragic time.

Rob Reiner’s illustrious career in entertainment began to take shape when he landed the role of Michael Stivic on the 1970s US sitcom All in the Family, the son-in-law of the show’s iconic lead, Archie Bunker. Though Reiner earned two Emmy Awards for his performance on the series and remained active in front of the camera for decades, it was his work behind the lens that cemented his legacy as a remarkably versatile and skilled director.

Reiner’s directorial debut was the cult classic music mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap in 1984. He followed it with the 1986 coming-of-age drama Stand By Me, the 1987 fantasy adventure The Princess Bride, the groundbreaking romantic comedy When Harry Met Sally… in 1989, a gripping adaptation of Stephen King’s Misery in 1990, and the Academy Award-nominated military courtroom drama A Few Good Men in 1992. His most recent film, released this year, was Spinal Tap II: The End Continues, making his final project the long-anticipated sequel to his first.

Born in The Bronx, New York in 1947, Reiner was the son of legendary actor, comedian, director, and writer Carl Reiner, whose own seven-decade career began in the golden age of television alongside comedy legend Mel Brooks.