EXCLUSIVE: How Rob Reiner and His Wife's Off-Set Love Story Changed the Course of One of Cinema's Most Enduring Rom-Coms
Rob Reiner’s real-life romance to his wife Michele reshaped the direction of one of cinema’s best rom-coms.
Dec. 16 2025, Published 4:53 p.m. ET
RadarOnline.com can reveal tragic Rob Reiner's off-set romance with his future wife reshaped one of Hollywood's most enduring romantic comedies, turning a bleak original ending into the hopeful finale that defined When Harry Met Sally.
Rob, 78, and his wife Michele Singer Reiner, 68, were found dead on Sunday at their Los Angeles home, with police now announcing they are holding the couple's ex-drug addict son Nick, 32, "responsible" for the Hollywood homicide horror.
A Transformation Driven by Real-Life Romance
Rob Reiner met his future wife Michele Singer while making 'When Harry Met Sally.'
The director and the photographer-producer had been married for 36 years, and Reiner had spoken publicly about how meeting Singer during the making of When Harry Met Sally changed both his life and the film itself.
Reiner explained in a 2024 television interview how his personal turmoil fed directly into the screenplay he developed with writer Nora Ephron.
"I had been married for 10 years, I'd been single for 10 years, and I couldn't figure out how I was ever going to be with anybody and that gave birth to When Harry Met Sally," he said, speaking to CNN's Who's Talking To Chris Wallace.
At the time, Reiner was coming off an illustrious early career.
Born to actors Carl Reiner and Estelle Reiner, he first found fame as an actor on All in the Family, winning two Emmys and meeting Billy Crystal, who would become one of his closest friends.
From Cynical Beginnings to a Hopeful Finale
Billy Crystal played Harry Burns, a character partly based on Reiner.
Reiner later moved behind the camera, directing This Is Spinal Tap, Stand By Me and The Princess Bride – before turning to romantic comedy.
Reiner said he wanted to explore whether men and women could sustain intimacy without sex.
Ephron based the character of Harry Burns on Reiner and Crystal, and Crystal went on to play the role opposite Meg Ryan.
Reiner said the filmmakers initially shared a downbeat ending for the story.
The original conclusion would have seen Harry and Sally meet years later, talk briefly and then walk away from one another.
That plan changed during production when Reiner met Singer.
"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," he said.
The revised finale, in which the characters reunite on New Year's Eve and later marry, mirrored Reiner's own shift from cynicism to commitment.
A Legacy Cut Short by Tragedy
Reiner and Singer married and stayed together for more than three decades.
Singer went on to co-found Reiner Light, a photography agency and production company, and the couple had three children – sons Jake and Nick and daughter Romy, 28, who found her parents' bodies.
The Reiners were discovered at their $13.5million mansion in Brentwood, California, with their throats slit.
A family spokesperson confirmed the deaths, saying: "It is with profound sorrow that we announce the tragic passing of Michele and Rob Reiner."
Crystal was seen visiting the house hours after the discovery and weeping inside a police cordon around the Reiners' home.
The actor has previously written about his friendship with Reiner, recalling the first screening of When Harry Met Sally.
"Rob and I were sitting in the back next to each other," he said. "We just grabbed each other's hands because we knew something exciting was about to happen with this movie."
Tributes From Hollywood and Beyond
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Tributes poured in after their deaths honored Reiner’s legacy and love story.
Tributes poured in from across film and politics in the wake of his and his wife's slaughter.
Actor Ben Stiller said: "He made some of the most formative movies for my generation. He came out from behind a huge comedic shadow of the great Carl Reiner and being a TV actor to being a great director who made an incredible run of movies. Spinal Tap is one of the best comedies ever made – and the list goes on. He was a kind caring person who was really really funny."
Josh Gad described Reiner and his wife as "two of the most kind and caring souls," adding their deaths were a "devastating" loss.
David Furnish wrote online he and his husband Elton John had just worked with Reiner and his wife on Spinal Tap II, saying: "They were a joy to meet – and brilliant to work with."
Political leaders also paid tribute. Gavin Newsom hailed Reiner was a "big-hearted genius," while Barack Obama said the Reiners' lives were "defined by purpose."
