“Princess Bride” Star Cary Elwes Breaks His Silence on Rob Reiner's Death: 'I Can Finally Put My Grief Into Words’
- - “Princess Bride” Star Cary Elwes Breaks His Silence on Rob Reiner's Death: 'I Can Finally Put My Grief Into Words’
Yamillah HurtadoDecember 30, 2025 at 2:38 AM
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Stephen Lovekin/Getty
Rob Reiner and Cary Elwes at the 25th Anniversary of 'The Princess Bride' in October 2012 -
Cary Elwes, who played Westley in Rob Reiner’s 1987 fantasy film The Princess Bride, paid tribute to the late director in a Monday, Dec. 29 post on Instagram
“I first met Rob Reiner on The Princess Bride. And from that very first meeting I fell in love with him,” Elwes wrote
Rob and Michele Reiner were killed on Sunday, Dec. 14, and their son Nick has been charged in their deaths
Cary Elwes is paying tribute to the late Rob Reiner, director of The Princess Bride.
The actor, who played Westley in the classic fantasy film, shared a statement on Reiner’s death alongside footage from the set in an Instagram post on Monday, Dec. 29. Rob and Michele Reiner died on Sunday, Dec. 14.
In his tribute, Elwes recalled the moment he met the Hollywood director and praised Reiner for his heart “filled with love and compassion.”
“Enough time has passed that I can finally put my grief into words,” Elwes wrote in his caption. “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.”
Elwes went on to say that he was a fan of Reiner’s work and that meeting him was a “dream come true.” “As we began spending more time together I knew this was someone I wanted in my life. I also knew that by casting me as Westley he was giving me the keys to the castle," he continued.
20th Century Fox
Robin Wright and Cary Elwes in The Princess Bride
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The star said he immediately noticed Rob “wore his heart on his sleeve,” and was someone who “felt deeply."
Elwes remembered Rob as a passionate and “brilliant” filmmaker, who loved the experience of creating a film above all.
“He used to say to me, ‘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.’ And boy was my time with him on The Princess Bride beyond great," Elwes said.
“I can’t remember a single day without laughter,” he shared. “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 also wrote of Michele and the love she shared with her husband, Rob. “To say they were a great team would be an understatement," Elwes wrote.
He added that he revered the couple for using their fame to lift up others and advocate for “those who were marginalized.”
Clive Coote/20th Century Fox/Kobal/Shutterstock
Rob Reiner and Cary Elwes on the set of The Princess Bride
He remembered Rob as someone who could always make him laugh “without fail.”
“And if I could make him laugh in return, I felt like I had won the lottery. His laugh was one of the greatest sounds I’ve ever known — so heartfelt it still rings in my ears.”
Elwes ended his tribute by thanking the couple for sharing their life and art with the world.
“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,” he concluded. “Sure, death cannot stop true love but life is pain without you. ⚔️💔”
Amanda Edwards/WireImage
Rob and Michele Reiner at The Human Rights Campaign in Los Angeles in 2019
The award-winning director, 78, and his wife Michele Reiner, 70, were found dead in their Los Angeles home on Sunday, Dec. 14. Their daughter, Romy, discovered her father dead and later learned her mother was also dead inside the home after being informed by a paramedic.
Rob and Michele’s youngest son Nick was charged with two counts of first-degree murder and taken into custody shortly after the couple was pronounced dead.
Prosecutors allege that Nick used a knife to kill his parents and are requesting a special circumstance of multiple murders and a special allegation that he used a “dangerous and deadly” weapon, Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman announced at a press conference on Dec. 16.
At his first court appearance on Wednesday, Dec. 17, Nick did not enter a plea. His arraignment is scheduled for Jan. 7, his attorney Alan Jackson told the press.
“There are very, very complex and serious issues that are associated with this case,” Jackson said. “Those need to be thoroughly, but very carefully, dealt with and examined and looked at and analyzed.”
“We ask that throughout the process, you allow the system to move forward in the way that it was designed to move forward. Not with a rush to judgment, not with jumping to conclusions, but with restraint and with dignity and with the respect that this system and this process deserves and that the family deserves.”
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Source: “AOL Entertainment”
