Billy Crystal has delivered an emotional tribute to Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner during the 98th Academy Awards.
Crystal began: "I met Mr. Rob Reiner when I was cast as his best friend in an episode of ‘All in the Family’ and it went so well that Rob said, ‘It was fun playing your best friend. Why don’t we keep it going?’ And it was a thrill to see him evolve from a great comic actor to a master storyteller.
"My friend Rob's movies will last a lifetime, because they're about what make us laugh and cry, and what we aspire to be
Reiner's friend went on to say for the filmmaker it 'meant everything to him that his work meant something to you'.
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He continued: "For us who had the privilege of working with and knowing him and loving him, all we can say is, buddy, what fun we had storming the castle."
Crystal then paid tribute to Michele, before he was joined by fellow actors on stage.
Nick Reiner, Rob and Michele's son, is accused of killing his parents after they were found deceased in the bedroom of their home in Brentwood, Los Angeles in December.
He has since been charged with first-degree murder.
Conan O’Brien, the host of this year's Oscars, spoke recently about why he thinks Reiner’s movies continue to resonate with audiences decades later. The pair had become close in recent years and O'Brien attended the director's party just hours before he was killed.
O’Brien said: “I think it’s seven movies that Rob Reiner made, in quick succession, that are classics. Now, if you can make one great movie, that’s impressive. It’s an almost impossible feat. To make two means that you’re one of the greats. To make seven – in, like, a nine-year, 10-year, 11-year period – is insanity.”
The Oscars host also opened up on the moment he realized what had happened to Reiner, as he explained: "They were just such lovely people. And to have that experience of saying good night to somebody and having them leave and then find out the next day that they’re gone. … I think I was in shock for quite a while afterward. I mean, there’s no other word for it. It’s just very – it’s so awful. It’s just so awful."
He added: "I think about how Rob felt about things that are happening in the country, how involved he was, how much he put himself out there—and to have that voice go quiet in an instant is still hard for me to comprehend.”
Topics: Rob Reiner, Hollywood, Entertainment, Oscars
Callum Jones