The entertainment community is still reeling from the tragic deaths of Rob Reiner and his wife, Michele Singer, last month. Many celebrities have shared their reactions and tributes to the couple in the weeks following their passing, including Jamie Lee Curtis and Cary Elwes. Sinners writer and director Ryan Coogler is the latest to do this, as he recently talked about how his heart broke upon learning what happened to Reiner.
Coogler shared his thoughts on the late actor and filmmaker while speaking with Extra at the Critics Choice Awards 2026 red carpet. Although he and Rob Reiner never had the chance to work together, the creative mind behind movies like Creed and Black Panther shared how meaningful Reiner’s movies meant to him growing up, particularly a certain 1989 romantic comedy:
Condolences to his family. His work impacted me incredibly. I remember being young and me and my parents watching ‘When Harry Met Sally…’ and just laughing, laughing they ass off at the scenes. That was, like, my first real interaction with an adult rom-com. That movie holds a special place in my heart.
When Harry Met Sally… still ranks as one of the best romantic comedies over 35 years after its release for good reason. Whether we’re talking about people who’ve been repeatedly watching it over the decades to folks who recently watched it for the first time, the Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan-led feature has all kinds of fans, including Ryan Coogler. It makes me wonder if he agrees that When Harry Met Sally… is a New Year’s movie.
But that’s just one entry on Rob Reiner’s filmography that Coogler grew up enjoying, and he remains impressed by how well the All in the Family alum was able to tell compelling cinematic stories. In his words:
He was so able to adapt to whatever the story was, you know? You look at ‘This Is Spinal Tap’ versus something like ‘Stand by Me,’ you know what I mean? Versus something like ‘When Harry Met Sally…’ or ‘The Princess Bride.’ He was able to be so fluid and let the story come to him. He was the best of us. I didn’t get a chance to get to know him personally, but my heart broke in a million pieces upon hearing that news.
It’s a shame that Ryan Coogler and Rob Reiner’s paths never crossed, as I’m sure the former would have appreciated the opportunity to tell the latter how much his work has meant to him. Who knows, maybe they even would figured out how to collaborate on a project. It’s no wonder Reiner’s death hit Coogler so hard.
Rob Reiner’s final movie ended up being last September’s Spinal Tap II: The End Continues, which, as with its predecessor, he wrote and starred in alongside Christopher Guest, Michael McKean and Harry Shearer. A few months before its release, he also guest starred as in The Bear Season 4 as Albert Schnur, a business consultant who ended up being more important to the Hulu subscription-exclusive series than I originally thought. Other popular Reiner movies include Stand by Men, Misery (which can now be streamed on Peacock) and A Few Good Men.
As for Ryan Coogler, Sinners ended up being one of the most critically-acclaimed movies of 2025 and made a respectable $368 million worldwide off a budget somewhere in the $90-100 million range. The vampire flick can be streamed with an HBO Max subscription, and Coogler is turning his attention to Black Panther 3 next, which doesn’t have a release date on the upcoming Marvel movies schedule yet.