Jack Black paid tribute to Rob Reiner during an appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers on Tuesday night, crediting the slain actor-director with inspiring two of his best-known projects.
Before promoting his own new film Anaconda, Black told Meyers, “I don’t really want to talk about anything other than Rob Reiner because he was such an incredible inspiration to me. And if you mention Tenacious D, there is no Tenacious D without Spinal Tap. And anyone out here, any of the young millennials that haven’t seen [This Is] Spinal Tap, do yourself a favor. There’s no School of Rock without Spinal Tap.”
“I love so many of his movies,” he continued. “It’s like an incredible oeuvre of films that he made. What a genius. I just wanted to really quick give a shout-out to one of the biggest inspirations of my life and send love to the universe to one of the greats. He brought so much joy.”
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The Reiner-directed rock mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap (one of his best movies) was released in 1984, a decade before Black formed the comedy-rock duo Tenacious D with Kyle Gass. Another decade later, Black starred in 2003’s School of Rock, playing a struggling musician who poses as a substitute teacher as he inspires a group of fifth graders to form a rock band.
Tragically, Reiner and his wife Michele were slain at their home in Brentwood, California, over the weekend. Their son Nick Reiner is currently being held on suspicion of murder.
Watch Jack Black’s appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers below.
