Crystal and his fellow Hollywood elites went on to praise the beloved filmmaker and his wife of 36 years as a “special force.”
“Strong and determined, Michele and Rob Reiner devoted a great deal of their lives for the betterment of our fellow citizens,” the statement continued. “They were a special force together – dynamic, unselfish and inspiring. We were their friends, and we will miss them forever.”
Reiner and his wife’s own love story played a significant role in “When Harry Met Sally.”
Back in 2018, the famed director revealed that he was inspired to change the ending of the film after falling for Michele, who was working as a photographer at the time, on set.
“I’d been single for 10 years, and I couldn’t figure out how I was ever going to be with anybody. That gave birth to ‘When Harry Met Sally,’” Reiner told the Guardian seven years before his death.
“I hadn’t met anybody, so it was going to be the two of them seeing each other after years, talking, and then walking away from each other,” he added.
However, meeting Michele inspired Reiner to change the ending to a happier one.
“I met her while we were making the film, and I changed the ending,” he explained. “Originally, Harry and Sally didn’t get together. But then I met Michele and I thought: OK, I see how this works.”
Crystal and Ryan reunited earlier this year for a “When Harry Met Sally” Super Bowl ad.
“It smells exactly like it did 36 years ago when we made it,” Crystal told The Post regarding his return to the Lower East Side pastrami palace. “It was so much fun to be out there at the same table.”
“There was nothing weird about it — it didn’t feel like, ‘Woah surreal,’” Ryan added. “We had a whole room of people wanting to be in on the joke. That was really adorable.”
