‘The Princess Bride’ Star Cary Elwes Shares Heartfelt Tribute to Rob and Michele Reiner

Cary Elwes is paying tribute to his late The Princess Bride director, Rob Reiner, following the deaths of the Hollywood legend and his wife, Michele Singer Reiner, on Dec. 14.

The actor, who played Westley in the beloved fairytale film, shared behind-the-scenes footage of Reiner on the set of the 1987 movie Monday as he remembered the director as someone whose “heart was filled with love and compassion.”

“Enough time has passed that I can finally put my grief into words,” Elwes, 63, began. “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.”

As someone who was already a “fan” of Reiner’s work, Elwes called meeting him “a dream come true,” adding, “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.”

“The first thing I noticed about Rob was that he wore his heart on his sleeve. This was a man who felt deeply. Whose heart was filled with love and compassion,” Elwes went on. “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.’ And boy was my time with him on The Princess Bride beyond great.”

The actor “can’t remember a single day without laughter” on the set of the classic film. “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 wrote.

The Robin Hood: Men in Tights actor also wrote of the Reiners’ dedication to philanthropy and “helping those who were marginalized.”

“In a town where many talk the talk, they truly walked it,” he said. “Whenever we got together we would talk about family, life, movies and politics. But without fail Rob would always find a way to make us laugh. That was important to him. Finding the joy.”

“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 continued, concluding, “Thank you Rob and Michele for sharing your life and art with us. 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.”

The award-winning director, 78, and his wife, 70, were found dead in their Brentwood, Calif., home on Dec. 14. The couple’s youngest son, 32-year-old Nick Reiner, has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder and is waiting in custody for his scheduled Jan. 7 arraignment.