Rob Reiner directed some of Hollywood’s most popular movies but before his passing, he had only helmed two films since 2017, and his friend Bill Maher shared the devastating reason why, as reported by RadarOnline.com
Bill Maher talks about Rob Reiner
“The discussions we had in recent years were a lot about him not being able to get funding,” Maher, shared on his Club Random podcast regarding how Reiner couldn’t get studios to cough up the money for new projects.
Reiner’s impressive directing resume included such beloved hits as The Princess Bride, Stand by Me, When Harry Met Sally, A Few Good Men, and The American President.
However, those smashes were released in the 1980s and 1990s, and Maher stated that the Hollywood icon was one of several in his age group who struggled getting financing for new projects.
“He’s not the only director of a certain age who’s told me that,” the Real Time host told guest John Stamos when discussing Reiner, who was 78 when he and wife Michele were murdered allegedly by their troubled son Nick.
“And I just was saying this town is very ageist and not very nice to people who have done amazing… I mean he’s got a pretty iconic resume of movies, but I remember him saying, ‘You know if it’s not spandex, and, you know, it’s very hard for even somebody of his stature to get that funding.”
Rob didn’t seem to have attempted to give his other children, son Jake and daughter Romy, a leg up in Hollywood with their acting careers, he went out of his way for disturbed nepo baby Nick.
The Bronx native directed a screenplay Nick cowrote regarding his struggles with drug addiction, which included 18 trips to rehab as well as periods of homelessness. Their critically panned film, Being Charlie, was released in 2015.
Following that, Rob directed Woody Harrelson in 2016’s LBJ and teamed up with him again for the 2017 journalism thriller Shock and Awe.
The All in the Family star’s directing resume greatly dried up after that. He directed a documentary about his comedian-actor pal Albert Brooks, which HBO released in 2023. Rob’s final directing project was a sequel to his 1984 cult classic mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap. Spinal Tap II: The End Continues was released in September.
