July 5, 2026, 10:49 a.m. ET
Surprise! Late Hollywood icon Rob Reiner‘s final TV role is all about skewering President Donald Trump.
The “When Harry Met Sally” director, who died in December, made an unannounced posthumous appearance in the July 3 episode of Larry David’s history-themed HBO sketch comedy “Life, Larry and the Pursuit of Unhappiness,” which is produced by former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama. At the end of the episode, Reiner played George Washington in a sketch centered on roasting Trump without ever saying his name, and Trump’s least favorite late-night comic, Jimmy Kimmel, even got involved.
In the scene, Reiner as Washington announces he will not be running for a third term and explains he wants future presidents to follow his lead. He says Congress can pass a constitutional amendment limiting presidents to two terms. But David, playing a man in the crowd listening to the speech, interjects and asks what would happen if, theoretically, a “narcissistic prick” one day became president and refused to follow the Constitution.
“Rest assured, even if this future president violated the Constitution, then the Congress of the United States, and the United States Supreme Court, would not allow it,” Washington insists, only for David to ask what would happen if the Supreme Court consisted of “a bunch of yes men” and Congress cared “more about party than country.”
“I can’t even fathom the existence of such men,” Washington says, but he adds that in the future, there should be a peaceful transfer of power after each election, “where the loser accepts the results of the election and full-throatedly endorses the victor.” In yet another obvious shot at Trump, David’s character agrees, “Anyone who wouldn’t accept the results of a free and fair election is a sociopath!”
As David rants at length against this hypothetical future president, who is obviously meant to be Trump, he warns that this person could attack the free press and try to silence “anyone who dares to criticize him,” at which point another man in the crowd, played by Kimmel, chimes in. “Come on, that could never happen! Are you suggesting that the president would taketh the time to challenge anyone who dare make fun of him?” Kimmel says. “As if he were a big baby? I don’t see it.”
Trump has repeatedly called for Kimmel, a vocal critic, to be fired.
As David riles the crowd up, Washington tries to assure everyone that “a man of such poor character would never be elected president in the first place,” but a violent brawl breaks out as the president looks on in horror. The episode ends there, and an in memoriam card honoring Reiner comes up on screen.
Reiner filmed the scene in “Life, Larry and the Pursuit of Unhappiness” on Nov. 13, just weeks before his death, director Jeff Schaffer told Variety. Schaffer also noted it was purposeful that the sketch aired the day before July 4. “It’s coming out on Fourth of July weekend, and if it in any way spoils a sad octogenarian’s weekend, then oh well,” he told Variety.
Reiner and his wife, Michele Singer Reiner, were both found dead in their Los Angeles home in December. Their son Nick Reiner has been charged with their killings. He has pleaded not guilty.
Reiner, a longtime Democratic activist, was a vocal critic of Trump, telling Variety in 2017 that he is “the single-most unqualified human-being to ever assume the presidency of the United States” and is “mentally unfit” for the role. After Reiner’s killing, Trump drew widespread criticism for blaming the director’s death on “TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROME.” Amid backlash, Trump doubled down by saying at the White House he “wasn’t a fan” of Reiner and calling him “a deranged person as far as Trump is concerned.”
Reiner’s son Jake Reiner also makes an appearance in “Life, Larry and the Pursuit of Unhappiness,” and he stepped out at the show’s premiere in June.
Rob Reiner’s appearance in David’s show comes after “The Bear” recently returned for its final season on June 25, with his character not making an appearance. But he was referenced in the series’ last episodes, which were shot after his death.
While speaking with USA TODAY, star Jeremy Allen White remembered working with the “incredibly generous [and] incredibly kind” star in past seasons. “[He was] so game and curious, committed. Really happy to be there.”
Contributing: Erin Jensen, USA TODAY
