Cary Elwes, who starred in Rob Reiner’s The Princess Bride, has paid tribute to the beloved director.
The actor, 63, played farmhand Westley in the 1987 fantasy classic alongside Robin Wright and Billy Crystal.
On Monday (29 December), he wrote on Instagram in remembrance of Reiner and his wife, the film producer Michele Singer, who were found dead in their home earlier this month.
“Enough time has passed that I can finally put my grief into words,” wrote Elwes. “I was 24 when I first met Rob Reiner on The Princess Bride. And from that very first meeting I fell in love with him.
“I was already a fan of his work so meeting him in person was a dream come true. As we began spending more time together I knew this was someone I wanted in my life.”
He said that the first thing he noticed about the director was that he “wore his heart on his sleeve” and “always tried to find the best in people”. Reiner “loved making movies” but more than that, wrote Elwes, he loved “the experience itself” of creating a film.
“He used to say, ‘Once the movie is released it belongs to other people. But while you are making it, that’s your time on the planet, so you wanna make it good,’” Elwes recalled. “And boy was my time with him on The Princess Bride beyond great. I can’t remember a single day without laughter.
“The movie is about love, loyalty and sacrifice. Things that Rob held dear. Which is among the many reasons he was the perfect person to direct it.”
Elwes went on to praise Singer as a “gifted photographer” and “an incredibly loving, intelligent person” who was “deeply passionate about her family and about lifting others up”.
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He concluded his statement, writing: “Because my heart still aches every time I think of you, I know the grief of losing you too soon will likely never go away. Sure, death cannot stop true love but life is pain without you.”
His words were accompanied by a compilation of videos of Reiner, including interviews of the director and behind-the-scenes shots of him directingThe Princess Bride.
Speaking to The Independent in 2023, Elwes spoke about his positive working with Reiner on the film, recalling how he “took the cast out every night”.
Elwes’s tribute follows several from Reiner’s peers in Hollywood, including Jamie Lee Curtis, Kevin Bacon, Jane Fonda, Kathy Bates, Elijah Wood, Ben Stiller, Zooey Deschanel, and Sir Elton John.
Reiner and Singer were found dead in their Brentwood home in Los Angeles on 14 December. Their cause of death was “multiple sharp force injuries”, according to records from the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner.
Their son, Nick Reiner, 32, was arrested and booked on suspicion of murder. He was charged with two counts of murder in the death of his parents.
Reiner met his wife on the set of his iconic 1989 romcom When Harry Met Sally. Falling in love with Singer, he said, inspired him to change the film’s originally unhappy ending to a romantic one.
With a career spanning over 50 years, Reiner is behind beloved films including This Is Spinal Tap (1984), Stand By Me (1986), Misery (1990), and A Few Good Men (1992).