Award-winning actor Rob Reiner has always been known for his political activism — so much so that he was even parodied in an episode of South Park titled “Butt Out.”
Reiner’s waded into those waters again, taking to Twitter to weigh in with provocative statements over Kyle Rittenhouse’s visit to Mar-a-Lago to visit former President Donald Trump.
His name began to trend on Twitter on Wednesday, alongside the Meathead nickname from his character in All in the Family — the classic ’70s TV sitcom where he first made his name before evolving into a well-known director.
“An underaged kid illegally takes an assault rifle across state lines, kills two people, injures another, then is welcomed with open arms at Mar-a-Lago by the leader of the Republican Party, a mentally ill Racist,” Reiner opined in a tweet.
“This is where we are,” finishing with a declarative, “God help US.”
Rittenhouse, of course, is the teen protagonist of a recent high-profile court case, in which he was acquitted of charges stemming from an August 2020 shooting at a protest event in Kenosha, Wis.
Reiner isn’t the first celebrity to tackle the topic of Rittenhouse on Twitter, of course. Author Stephen King notable compared Rittenhouse to a shooter from the Columbine High School massacre the morning he was acquitted.
But Reiner’s tweet brought in dialogue from those who disagreed with his position, including former ‘Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman’ actor Dean Cain, who asked Reiner to “at least be factual with your tweets.”
Immigration lawyer Matthew Kolken went as far as to note, “Imputing a person committed a crime is defamation per se,” cheekily adding, “You should probably consult a lawyer, Rob.”
However, many flocked to Twitter to agree with Reiner as well. The Tweet, which garnered nearly 12,000 retweets and over 52,000 likes in its first 14 hours on the platform, sparked discussion.
One user suggested googling “Zimmerman now” — referring to George Zimmerman, the subject of the 2012 trial for the Trayvon Martin shooting in Florida — to see what life would look like for Rittenhouse in the future.
Another user compared the meeting to the cult-classic Dumb & Dumber comedy films.
Another user shared an incisive quote from Trevor Noah about the case.