In the wake of the Rob Reiner and Michele Singer’s tragic passing last night, fans of the legendary actor/director’s legacy have taken to social media to reminisce over his unbelievably wide-spanning body of work; from small roles playing Jessica Day’s affable father on New Girl, or cameo appearances on Hannah Montana and Wizards of Waverly Place, to the true modern classics he helped spin together—ones now tightly woven into our cultural DNA like Stand By Me, or the rom-com that arguably defined modern rom-coms: When Harry Met Sally.
As it turns out, the 1989 film, written by Nora Ephron, didn’t just popularize the friends-to-lovers trope, raise the bar for on-screen meet-cutes, and kick off the decades-long “can men and women be friends?” debate. But it was also how Rob and Michele first met, thus completely pivoting the film’s iconic ending.
By now, anyone with taste should know that the movie ends with an impassioned speech from Harry confronting Sally at a New Year’s Eve party to confess his true feelings for her. There, he delivers a speech that deserves a spot in the nonexistent dramatic rom-com monologue hall of fame:
“I love that you get cold when it's 71 degrees out. I love that it takes you an hour and a half to order a sandwich. I love that you get a little crinkle above your nose when you're looking at me like I'm nuts. I love that after I spend the day with you, I can still smell your perfume on my clothes. And I love that you are the last person I want to talk to before I go to sleep at night. And it's not because I'm lonely, and it's not because it's New Year's Eve. I came here tonight because when you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible.”
But that iconic scene almost never existed. Last year, in an interview with CNN, Reiner explained that his original ending for the film was far less optimistic. “It was going to be the two of them seeing each other after years, talking and then walking away from each other,” he said. “I had been married for 10 years. I’d been single for 10 years, and I couldn’t figure out how I was ever going to be with anybody, and that gave birth to When Harry Met Sally.”
The plot shifted entirely when Rob met Michele (and provided some proof for the whole “love at first sight” concept). Michele, a successful photographer, was visiting the film’s set when she caught Rob’s eye. Back in ’89, he told The New York Times: “I look over and I see this girl, and ‘Whoo!’ I was attracted immediately.” The two married just seven months later. Her presence in his life made him far more optimistic about love, and he wanted his work to reflect that. “I met Michele, and I thought: ‘OK, I see how this works.’ Harry and Sally had to marry each other, too,” he said in a 2018 interview with The Guardian.
Michele’s involvement in Rob’s work didn’t stop there: they went on to produce multiple films together, including the 2023 Albert Brooks documentary and this year's Spinal Tap sequel. They remained married until their passing and had three children together. When asked last year about the secret to his successful 36-year marriage, he said it was dependent on the trope that When Harry Met Sally made famous. "We’re good friends. That’s what it comes down to. We get along just great and enjoy each other’s company."
