Spinal Tap Director ROB REINER Calls BLACK SABBATH 'Dumb' Over Stonehenge Accusation: 'It’s Ridiculous'

The director behind This Is Spinal Tap is calling out Black Sabbath for something that happened over 40 years ago, and he’s not pulling any punches.

In a recent interview with Screen Rant, filmmaker Rob Reiner revisited a long-standing misunderstanding between the legendary heavy metal band and the makers of the cult comedy film. The disagreement centers on one of the movie’s most memorable scenes: a tiny stage prop meant to resemble Stonehenge.

A joke gone too real

This Is Spinal Tap was released in March 1984. Styled as a mockumentary, the film follows a fictional British metal band as they bumble their way through a chaotic tour filled with misfires and miscommunications.

It’s full of satire, awkward band drama, and absurd moments, including a scene where a prop designer accidentally builds an 18-inch Stonehenge replica instead of an 18-foot one.

Here’s where things got weird. Black Sabbath, who had been touring with their own Stonehenge-themed stage setup around the same time, thought the film had copied them.

According to Reiner, the band was convinced the movie had lifted the idea straight from their tour visuals.

Reiner says there’s no way that’s possible

Speaking to Screen Rant, Reiner made it clear that the idea for the miniature Stonehenge joke had been in the script long before Black Sabbath unveiled their version.

“Black Sabbath’s tour started two or three weeks before our film came out. They got mad and claimed we stole the Stonehenge idea,” Reiner said. “To me, that was the best part. It showed how dumb they were. What did they think? That we shot the film, edited it, and got it into theaters in two weeks? That’s ridiculous.”

Reiner added that the misunderstanding only highlighted the kind of comedy the movie was trying to capture in the first place. In his words, it was a “perfect heavy metal moment”, a blend of theatrics, ego, and poor communication.

Born Again meets Spinal Tap

The Black Sabbath tour in question was for their 1983 album “Born Again”, the only one to feature former Deep Purple frontman Ian Gillan on vocals.

That tour included a massive Stonehenge stage prop, which reportedly turned out to be so large that it couldn’t fit in many venues. It had to be dropped from several shows due to logistical issues.

Ironically, This Is Spinal Tap had already filmed a reversed version of that scenario, where the stage prop is comically too small. The parallels were so close that Black Sabbath assumed the movie was mocking them directly.

Real-life stories inspired the movie

Reiner, who co-wrote the film with Harry Shearer, Christopher Guest, and Michael McKean, says many of the movie’s jokes were based on actual events from music history.

He cited stories about bands getting lost backstage, unusual rider requests, and bizarre technical failures.

For example, he mentioned Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers getting lost behind the scenes at a show and Van Halen’s famously picky backstage snack demands.

But the Stonehenge scene? That one, he says, came from the writers’ own imaginations, long before Black Sabbath rolled giant stones onstage.

Spinal Tap is still going

Despite being a parody, Spinal Tap has remained a part of music culture. The band’s fake discography, frequent drummer accidents, and on-stage mishaps struck a chord with musicians and fans alike.

The film was added to the Library of Congress in 2002 for its cultural significance.

This September, Reiner and the original cast, Guest, McKean, and Shearer, are returning with a sequel titled Spinal Tap II: The End Continues.

The plot brings the fictional band back together for one last concert after a 15-year break, as required by a clause in their late manager’s will.

Musical guests include Elton John, Paul McCartney, Garth Brooks, and Trisha Yearwood, all playing versions of themselves.

Legacy

Stonehenge keeps showing up in rock music for a reason, it checks the boxes for drama, mysticism, and vague ancient vibes.

Bands love a shortcut to “epic,” and a pile of fake druid rocks usually does the trick. Big or small, the monument still finds its way into stage sets and music videos looking for some instant grandeur.

For Rob Reiner, the joke was never about the monument itself. It was about what happens when spectacle outweighs sense.

In Spinal Tap, the tiny Stonehenge wasn’t a mythic symbol, it was a punchline about sloppy planning and unchecked ego.

Black Sabbath, on the other hand, seemed convinced the movie was poking fun directly at them. Reiner didn’t need to parody Sabbath. They did it themselves just by being angry about it.

“They were so dumb they thought we stole it,” he said. “It’s exactly the kind of thing Spinal Tap would do, and that’s the joke.”

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