Actor and director Rob Reiner and his wife Michele found stabbed to death in their Los Angeles mansion

Sadness, shock, and concern have gripped Hollywood. Rob Reiner, actor and director of acclaimed films such as The Princess Bride and When Harry Met Sally, has been found dead in his Los Angeles home alongside his wife, Michele Reiner. Their bodies were discovered with stab wounds.

“It is with profound sorrow that we announce the tragic passing of Michele and Rob Reiner,” a family spokesperson said in a statement. “We are heartbroken by this sudden loss, and we ask for privacy during this unbelievably difficult time.”

There were no signs of forced entry at the Reiners’ residence, according to the local outlet Los Angeles Times, which also reported that “a family member was being interviewed in connection with the deaths.” People magazine went further, claiming exclusively — citing “multiple sources” — that the couple were allegedly stabbed by their middle son, Nick, who struggled with addiction, and that it was their other daughter, the youngest, Romy, who found the bodies. This information has not been confirmed by official sources, which maintain that a homicide investigation is ongoing.

The Los Angeles Fire Department reported the news on Sunday, but did not provide many details. According to Captain Mike Bland, the bodies of two people — a man and a woman — had been found in a mansion in the Brentwood neighborhood, one of the city’s most affluent areas. At around 3:30 p.m. local time, emergency services received a call reporting that someone needed medical assistance. The house belonged to actor and director Rob Reiner, 78 — son of the late, well-known actors Carl Reiner and Estelle Reiner — and his wife Michele, 68. The couple had three children: Jake, 34; Nick, 32; and Romy, 28.

Police initially provided no further details, but later revealed that the victims had both died from stab wounds. Finally, around 7:30 p.m., it became known that the deceased were Rob and Michele. The Los Angeles Police Department’s Robbery-Homicide Division is investigating both deaths as an “apparent homicide.”

Around 9:00 p.m., the deputy chief of the Los Angeles Police Department’s investigative division, Alan S. Hamilton, held a press conference before a crowd of media gathered outside the Reiners’ home on Chadbourne Avenue. He clarified very little, other than confirming that a judicial investigation is underway regarding “a crime scene” and that information would be released as it is confirmed and can be made public in the coming days. Authorities intend to question all close family members. Beyond the police cordon on the Reiners’ street, the neighborhood had not been sealed off or evacuated.

Half a century in Hollywood

Reiner had spent more than half a century working in film and television as an actor, director, screenwriter, and producer. He started acting on television in the early 1960s. His breakout role came in the 1970s with All in the Family, where he appeared in almost 200 episodes as Michael Stivic, the family’s hippie son-in-law. He continued appearing in TV series throughout his life, including Frasier, The Simpsons, The Good Fight, New Girl, 30 Rockefeller Plaza, and, more recently, the acclaimed series The Bear, one of his last projects.

In film, he also starred in titles such as Postcards from the Edge, Sleepless in Seattle, The Man with One Red Shoe, Bullets over Broadway, The First Wives Club, Primary Colors, and The Wolf of Wall Street. In total, he participated in around 90 productions.

But above all, his work as a director stands out, with some 30 films to his name. His directorial debut was Sonny Boy in 1974, but from there came gems of cinema and popular culture such as The Princess Bride, When Harry Met Sally, Misery, and Stand by Me (two of the most beloved Stephen King adaptations), A Few Good Men — the only one to earn him an Academy Award nomination, for Best Picture, in 1993 — North; The American President; The Story of Us; Now and Then; Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, and the various installments of the mock rockumentary This Is Spinal Tap.

Although Rob was born in New York, in the Bronx, he moved to Los Angeles when he was just 12 years old. His family, Jewish but only casually practicing, settled in Beverly Hills, where he made lifelong friends while attending the local school, Beverly Hills High School, alongside actor Richard Dreyfuss and director Albert Brooks. He spent his entire life in Los Angeles, where he was a prominent liberal political activist, supporting the campaigns of Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden and speaking out against Donald Trump.

Rob and Michele, a photographer, camerawoman, and producer, met during the filming of When Harry Met Sally and married months later, in May 1989. It was his second marriage; he had previously been married to the comedic actress and director Penny Marshall from 1971 to 1981 and adopted her daughter, actress Tracy Reiner.

In a 2016 interview with People, Nick, the couple’s middle child, spoke about his struggles with addiction, which began when he was very young and led him to enter rehab at age 15, with multiple stints in clinics. He left home and even lived on the streets, as he explained to the magazine. He drew on these difficult experiences to write a book, which was later adapted into the semi-autobiographical film Being Charlie, directed by his father.

A loss for Los Angeles

The couple was deeply loved in the city and across California, so much so that Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass issued a statement of condolences, calling it “a devastating loss for our city and our country.” “Personally, I am heartbroken by the tragic loss of Rob and his wife Michele. I knew Rob and have tremendous respect for him. Among his numerous contributions, Rob helped create First 5 California, a landmark initiative funded by a tobacco tax to support early childhood development programs. He and Michele fought for early childhood development and marriage equality, working to overturn Proposition 8. They were true champions for LGBTQ+ rights.”

Governor Gavin Newsom said in a statement that he and his wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, were “heartbroken by the tragic loss.” “Rob was the big-hearted genius behind so many of the classic stories we love,” he said. “His boundless empathy made his stories timeless, teaching generations how to see goodness and righteousness in others — and encouraging us to dream bigger. That empathy extended well beyond his films. Rob was a passionate advocate for children and for civil rights — from taking on Big Tobacco to fighting for marriage equality to serving as a powerful voice in early education. He made California a better place through his good works. Rob will be remembered for his remarkable filmography and for his extraordinary contribution to humanity."

In 2017, in an interview with EL PAÍS, Reiner stated that Donald Trump, who was then serving his first mandate, inspired him for his work, and that he was considering doing a project about him. “Everyone’s been suggesting it to me lately. They’ve also been asking me for a sequel to When Harry Met Sally my whole life, but that’s a story I’ve already told. Trump interests me more. There’s also something that fascinates me: how reality shows affect our lives. I call it the ‘Kardashian-ization’ of the United States. It’s impressive that the Kardashians built an empire from nothing, but it’s also thought-provoking. Fame as a life achievement… it could make a wonderful movie.”

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