Feldman speaks to EW in a reunion interview with “Stand by Me” costars Jerry O’Connell and Wil Wheaton: “All very destroyed” by Reiner’s death.

Corey Feldman addresses being left out of Rob Reiner Oscars tribute: ‘Family reunion I wasn’t invited to’ (exclusive)

Feldman speaks to EW in a reunion interview with "Stand by Me" costars Jerry O'Connell and Wil Wheaton: "All very destroyed" by Reiner's death.

Joey Nolfi

Joey Nolfi is a senior writer at *. *Since 2016, his work at EW includes RuPaul’s Drag Race video interviews, Oscars predictions, and more.

EW's editorial guidelines

on March 27, 2026 4:45 p.m. ET

Leave a Comment

Jerry O'Connell in Oscars tribute to Rob Reiner; Corey Feldman in 'Stand by Me'. Credit:

Corey Feldman has opened up to ** about his feelings on being left out of the 2026 Oscars tribute to his late *Stand by Me *director Rob Reiner.

In a joint EW interview with costars Jerry O'Connell and Wil Wheaton tied to the 1986 film's theatrical re-release for its 40th anniversary, Feldman reacts to the headline-making Academy Awards moment when 17 stars from Reiner's projects united on stage to honor the legacy of the filmmaker, who, alongside his wife Michele, was found in his California home in December 2025 following an apparent homicide.

"I think Jerry and Wil did what had to be done. It was a fleeting moment, so I don't feel like I missed much at all. I personally was probably maybe a little bothered by the fact that nobody got to speak or do or say anything from their own heart," Feldman says. "Although they did a wonderful job, I would've liked to have heard from Wil and Jerry and a few other people up there."

Corey Feldman and Jerry O'Connell in 'Stand by Me'.

Feldman continues, saying that "it is what it is," adding that he likes that the Academy chose to "honor the great memory of Rob" at all.

Still, "Personally, it felt a little bit like a family reunion I wasn't invited to, but we're not going to use this time to go into my feeling about that," he says. "Instead I just want to say that I'm with the rest of us, we're all very destroyed that things went down the way they did, losing Rob when we all thought he'd be joining us at some point for this tour and it's a tragedy."

EW has reached out to representatives for the Academy for comment.

Super early 2027 Oscars predictions: Will Amy Adams finally win her first Academy Award?

Rebecca Gayheart shares Eric Dane tribute after Oscars leaves him out of 'In Memoriam' segment

***Get your daily dose of entertainment news, celebrity updates, and what to watch with our EW Dispatch newsletter*.**

Feldman, who was a child actor at the time of *Stand by Me*'s production, admits that "we all would've loved to be able to say goodbye in our own ways. Unfortunately, that didn't happen. The best way we can say goodbye is honoring him and his work and his film through these tours that we're doing and these interviews and getting people to take the moment and time to acknowledge the history of his work and art that he created, and hopefully going out there to celebrate him one last time on a big screen where it deserves to be seen."

The actor previously spoke about the tribute on social media, where he alleged, "I JUST WANT 2 BRIEFLY MENTION THIS WHOLE OSCARS THING! YES ITS TRUE THAT I WAS NOT INVITED, I UNDERSTAND MANY BELIEVE ITS DUE 2 BEING OUTSPOKEN ABOUT THE ABUSE I SUFFERED AS A CHILD & THE CAMPAIGN 2 SILENCE ME," in reference to his years of outspoken support for survivors of sexual abuse, which he said he previously experienced in his career.

Michael McKean, Christopher Guest, Jerry O'Connell, Wil Wheaton, Fred Savage, Cary Elwes, Mandy Patinkin, Carol Kane, Billy Crystal, Meg Ryan, Kiefer Sutherland, Demi Moore, Kevin Pollak, Kathy Bates, Annette Bening, John Cusack, and Daphne Zuniga onstage during Rob Reiner tribute.

Kevin Winter/Getty

Reiner's *When Harry Met Sally* star Billy Crystal introduced the Reiner tribute at the March 15 Oscars ceremony, which included appearances from multiple collaborators who worked with Reiner over the years.

Celebrities who joined the telecast for the tribute included O'Connell, Wheaton, Crystal, Meg Ryan, Demi Moore, Kathy Bates, Christopher Guest, Michael McKean, Fred Savage, Cary Elwes, Mandy Patinkin, Carol Kane, Kiefer Sutherland, Kevin Pollak, Annette Bening, John Cusack, and Daphne Zuniga.**** Wheaton, Feldman, and O'Connell are currently on a live reunion tour on behalf of *Stand by Me*'s re-release, with upcoming dates in Seattle, Indianapolis, Chicago, and Portland, Ore.

- Celebrities & Creators

- Celebrity Feuds & Controversies

Original Article on Source

Source: “EW Celebrity”