December 16, 2025 • 23 mins
We dive into the tragic murders of Rob Reiner & his wife, Michele Singer Reiner. Their son Nick Reiner has been arrested and charged with 1st degree murder with special circumstance.
We go through what is publicly available regarding the murders and dive into the tumultuous and complex relationship Nick had with his parents and also look into his past which has included addiction issues and homelessness since he was a young teenager.
We also go through what people who knows the family have said since the murders happened.
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We go through what is publicly available regarding the murders and dive into the tumultuous and complex relationship Nick had with his parents and also look into his past which has included addiction issues and homelessness since he was a young teenager.
We also go through what people who knows the family have said since the murders happened.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
What's to know?
Speaker 2 (00:00):
Alibyers. Welcome to another episode of Pretty Lies and Alibis.
Speaker 1 (00:04):
I'm Gigi. Good to have you here. It's Tuesday, December sixteenth.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
We're going to dive into the murders of Rob Reiner
and Michelle Singer. Reiner such a crazy and horrific case
and at the end of the day, if you shed
away the fact that Rob Reiner is who he is
and Michelle Singer was who she was in the Hollywood industry, unfortunately,
this is a tragic tale that millions of Americans deal
(00:28):
with on a daily basis, which is having a loved
one struggle with addiction and mental health issues.
Speaker 1 (00:35):
Not only that, but these murders.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Were domestic violence, and that's something that unfortunately we report
on way too often here. It just tends to get
a lot more publicity when it is somebody famous, but
no less tragic. Rob Reiner and his wife Michelle were
found murdered in their home. The LAPD received to call
at three thirty pm on Sunday, December fourteenth for medical aid,
(00:58):
but soon after the Robbery and Homicide Division were called
to the home for a death investigation. They confirmed the
couple was stabbed to death, while other reports are saying
their throats were slit. Investigators believe they were either killed
Saturday night or Sunday, and as we know, their troubled son,
Nick Reiner, has been arrested. Their daughter Rommie found the bodies,
(01:21):
and according to TMZ, she told police Nick had been
living with his parents and was dangerous. She said he
should be considered a suspect, so right off the bat
she had a good idea of who would have done this. Now,
Rob's family issued a statement that said, it is with
profound sorrow that we announced the tragic passing of Michelle
and Rob Reiner. We are heartbroken by this sudden loss,
(01:42):
and we asked for privacy during this unbelievably difficult time.
Robin Michelle met on the set of Rob's movie when
Harry met Sally. They married in nineteen eighty nine, and
at the time of their death they were married for
thirty six years. In fact, their relationship changed Rob's mind
to have Billy Christ and Meg Ryan's character end up
together now. During their marriage, Rob and Michelle had three
(02:05):
children together, Nick, Rommy, and Jake. Rob also has a
daughter from a previous marriage to Penny Marshall. Tracy Reiner.
He adopted her while the two were married, and they
maintained a very close relationship, and Tracy has had her
own career, being in a ton of movies, including playing
Betty Spaghetti in A League of their Own, which her
(02:27):
mother directed. She was also in Apollo thirteen, That thing
you do a lot of really great films, and she said,
I don't know what to say. I'm in shock. She
had just seen her father the day before he was killed.
Michelle was a producer and actress known for the Movie's Misery,
Albert Brooks, Defending My Life, and Mixed Nuts. Rob comes
(02:47):
from Hollywood Royalty. He is the son of comedian Carl Reiner,
who passed away in twenty twenty, and Rob's career in Hollywood.
Speaker 1 (02:55):
Began in the nineteen sixties.
Speaker 2 (02:57):
He and Steve Martin were writing partners on the Smothers
Brother's comedy Hour that ran from nineteen sixty eight to
sixty nine. He branched out into acting and during the
seventies he started as Meathead on the sitcom All in
the Family. He was actually chosen over Richard Dreyfuss and
Harrison Ford for that role. He won two Primetime Emmy
(03:18):
Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. That
series ran until nineteen seventy nine. He also had small
roles on hit shows such as Batman, That Girl, The
Beverly Hillbillies, and The Partridge Family. He also went on
to write for several shows, including Happy Days. Then he
wanted to direct, and his first big hit was This
(03:41):
is Spinal Tap, which is such a great movie, and
just recently he wrapped production and has been promoting Spinal
Tap to the End Continues, which is out now in theaters.
He directed huge blockbusters and beloved hits like stand By Me,
When Harry Met Sally, A Few Good Men, The Princess Bride,
(04:01):
and Misery. He also worked with his son Nick on
Being Charlie, a family drama that's rooted in autobiography. He
has also finished a follow up to Spinal Tap two
that will be released next year, where the fictional band
and other big names play at Stonehenge.
Speaker 1 (04:18):
Now.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
Robin Michelle's son, Nick, who is thirty two, is believed
to have left home after the murders and checked into
the Pure Side Hotel in Santa Monica around four am
on Sunday. An eyewitness said that Nick appeared to be
tweaking out when he was checking in. The hotel room
was said to be covered in blood. When staff went
inside the clean they found the shower was full of blood,
(04:40):
there was bloodstains on the bed, and the windows have
been covered with bed sheets. The LAPD responded to that
room Monday, December fifteenth, and they also interviewed employees there.
At some point on Sunday, Nick went to an area
near the University of Southern California's campus in University Park.
Speaker 1 (04:59):
He was arrested Sunday at.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
Nine point fifteen pm, and he was in the area
around a metro station near the campus. That arrest came
about six hours after the body of his parents were
found by his sister, Romi, and he is being held
without bond now. The Los Angeles Police Departments Gang and
Narcotics Division posted photos of Nick's arrest on their Facebook page.
(05:22):
Those have since been taken down, but at the moment,
he is at the Twin Towers Correctional Facility and he
is on self harm watch.
Speaker 1 (05:29):
In the search for Nick.
Speaker 2 (05:30):
The LAPD requested the help of the Marshal's Apprehension Task
Force helped find Nick.
Speaker 1 (05:36):
An assist in his arrest.
Speaker 2 (05:38):
Nick has had a lot of troubles in his life,
including homelessness and drug addiction. Now, there were some reports
that Billy Crystal saw the bodies before police arrived. That
has been debunked by Billy Crystal spoke person who said
he never did see the bodies, Thank goodness for that.
Also showing up the crime scene was Larry David from
Curb Your Enthusiasm, and understandably both he and Billy Crystal
(06:02):
look very upset.
Speaker 1 (06:03):
Now.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
Ronnie has an Instagram where you can see cute talks
with her dad and most recently, photos of a family
vacation they took at the end of November into the
beginning of December. She has photos of her and her
dad swimming in the ocean, and she captured the photo.
Thankful for family health and followers of any age. Not
long before the murders, rob his wife, Michelle, and Nick
(06:25):
all attended Conan O'Brien's Christmas party Saturday night, which was
the thirteenth. Other attendees said Nick seemed out of place.
He was dressed in a hoodie while everyone else was
dressed in suits and dresses. He also reportedly just roamed
around without interacting with many people, and people called his
behavior odd. They were said to be freaked out, and
(06:47):
a source told people that Nick was acting crazy and
was asking everyone there if they were famous. NBC News
is reporting that Nick is alleged to have interrupted a
conversation with Bill Hayter. When Bill Hayes told him the
conversation was private, Nick appeared to stand still and stare
before storming off.
Speaker 1 (07:06):
While at the party, Nick and.
Speaker 2 (07:07):
His parents got into what's been described as a very
loud and heated argument that was overheard by others in attendance.
One person said at one point Rob told Nick his
behavior was inappropriate, but they were unsure what the root
of the argument was about. Rob and his wife, Michelle
left after that argument, and it's not known exactly when
(07:28):
Nick left. This comes on the heels of another loud
verbal argument Rob and Nick had a few months ago
at a restaurant. Nick started screaming at his dad in
front of other customers at a very nice restaurant in
the Santa Monica Canyon. A lifelong family friend who lives
near the Wriiners told The New York Post that Rob
and Michelle were scared for Nick and his mental health
(07:48):
state was getting worse. He also said at his lowest point,
Nick was badly addicted to a combination of opiates and heroin.
The neighbor also said Nick was supposedly off drugs, but
it seemed clear he was not so much off of drugs.
The neighbor also said this is not the first time
Nick's been violent, and he mentioned an incident that happened
(08:09):
a few years back, but did not go into specifics.
Speaker 1 (08:12):
He said he just never thought it would get to
this point.
Speaker 2 (08:15):
Rob was always heartbroken that Nick could not beat his addiction,
and also they had argued about it for years now.
A security card that was hired by the Rhiners after
the Palisades fired said Nick had been living with his
parents for at least the past year, and he said
you could tell something was a little off with Nick.
He also said he was a very strange individual, but
(08:36):
he would never expect Nick to do this, and he
described Rob and Michelle as great, great people. He would
see them daily. When they saw him, they would ask
if he was okay or if he needed anything like food.
He said they were the sweetest people in the world,
and on one rainy day, Michelle gave him an umbrella
because he had left us at home. Another family friend
(08:57):
said his parents wanted Nick to get help of the facility,
but Nick wanted to get help at home and not
go to a treatment facility. A former schoolmate of Nick
said he had always been troubled, and when she saw
the news that Rob and Michelle had been killed, she
immediately knew it was Nick. Family sources told TMZ that
over the last few months, Michelle said they were at
(09:18):
their wits end with Nick's substance abuse and his mental
health issues. She felt they had tried everything and just
did not know what to do. Nick first got hooked
on drugs as a teenager and was frequently in rehab.
His first visit to rehab was when he was only
fifteen years old. His addiction ultimately led to him being
(09:40):
homeless and his relationship with his family got very distant.
Now I've read he's been in rehab anywhere between seventeen
to twenty times over the course of the years since
his addiction first started. The Daily Mail spoke with a
source close to the family who said that Nick was
a ticking time bomb. After his parents threatened to make
him leave their he home, Nick appeared on a podcast
(10:02):
that's called The Dope Podcast and recalled that he once
destroyed the guest house he was living in on his
parents' property while spun out on uppers like cocaine and
something else. Nick said he was self sequestered in the
guest house for days on end. His parents told him
he needed to leave, so Nick said he started punching things.
(10:23):
He told the podcast, I started with the TV, then
I went over to the lamp, and then progressively just
everything in the guest house got wrecked. The family friend
said that Nick would do meth and not sleep for days.
He would have outbursts, punched the walls, break things inside
the guest house, and his drug use was apparently getting worse.
(10:43):
The family friend said Nick would brag about getting away
with everything and said he stole money from his parents
for drugs, and he would talk about these things that
sobriety meetings and would laugh about it. He ultimately stopped
attending the meetings, saying it was too cultish. Page six
reported that Nick's relationship with his siblings has always been
rocky and that Nick's issues have been so much a
(11:06):
part of their life and has especially traumatized Rommy over
the years. A family friend says that Rob and Michelle
have always been honest with people about their struggles with Nick,
and people who spent time with the family saw at firsthand.
A former yoga instructor of Rob and Michelle's recalled Nick
interrupted pretty much every yoga session for at least twenty
(11:27):
minutes or so, and that often included intense screaming.
Speaker 1 (11:31):
A source told Page six.
Speaker 2 (11:33):
That Rommy has always been very close with her parents,
and watching her parents' pain over Nick has impacted her
and the whole family so much. Nick was said to
have had serious behavioral issues starting at a young age.
During a time of sobriety, Nick and Rob worked together
on a project of Nick's called Being Charlie. It's a
film that was loosely based on Nick's struggles with addictions
(11:56):
and homelessness. Rob directed the film and Nick wrote the
script along with a friend he met in rehab. Rob
said in an interview that they butted heads during the
writing process, but in the end, he said it helped
him to understand Nick Moore and it also helped him
to be a better father. And Nick said that their
bond came as a result of watching his dad in
(12:18):
his element, and he said he probably should have stayed
quiet and learned from him. He did say they never
connected while he was growing up, but making the movie
together was a huge turning point in their relationship and
the experience changed everything for them as father and son.
Rob said in an interview with Nick, they did fight
over things regarding the movie, but it actually made the
(12:41):
movie better. Eric O'Day was a stuntman on the movie
and said that Nick and Rob would argue in front
of the cast and crew during filming, and said there
was a very noticeable tension between the two while filming.
He said, you could tell Nick was spoiled and Rob
was just sick of his crap. I just assumed, whether
this is correct or not, the kid must be pushing
(13:01):
all of his buttons. He said there was hostility between
Nick and Rob from the first day on set, but
he also said it was clear how much Rob loved
Nick despite all the tension. He said Rob was doing
this movie for Nick, but it seemed Nick was just unappreciative.
In an interview with People magazine back in twenty sixteen,
Nick opened up about his struggles with addiction and homelessness,
(13:25):
which was echoed in that film being Charlie. He said,
because of his refusal to go to rehab, I was
homeless in Maine. I was homeless in New Jersey. I
was homeless in Texas. I spent nights on the street.
I spent weeks on the street. It wasn't fun. He
was also in and out of homeless shelters, and he
(13:45):
told people, if I wanted to do it my way
and not go to the programs they were suggesting, then
I had to be homeless. The two did an interview
for a YouTube channel called the AOL Build Series promoting
their film, where Nick said as a kid, they really
just didn't bond. He said, for instance, Rob liked baseball,
which he would watch with his other son Jake, and
(14:06):
Nick would watch basketball. Rob said while he had a
lot of experience making movies, when it came to making
the movie deeper and better, he actually relied on Nick
forgiving it the honesty and truth that it has going
back to when he was homeless. Nick said, I could
have died out there. It's all luck. You roll the
dice and hope you make it. Rob said it was very,
(14:28):
very hard going through it the first time, with these painful,
difficult highs and lows, and making the movie dredged all
that back up again, and he said rehab works for
some people, but it can't.
Speaker 1 (14:39):
Work for everybody.
Speaker 2 (14:40):
Rob told the La Times back in twenty fifteen that
they should have listened to Nick over the professionals when
Nick said rehab wasn't working for him. Rob said, we
were desperate, and because the people had diplomas on their wall,
we listened to them when we should have.
Speaker 1 (14:56):
Been listening to our son.
Speaker 2 (14:58):
Nick's mo Michelle added, we were so influenced by these people.
They would tell us Nick's a liar and that he
was trying to manipulate us, and we believe them. Nick
did say one good thing that came out of Rehab
was the film. He said, I got sick of it.
I got sick of doing that. I come from a
nice family. I'm not supposed to be out there on
the streets and in homeless shelters doing all these things.
(15:22):
He also said, I really wasn't sure I wanted to
do this, Meaning the interview, a person who had just
watched the movie walked up to the family expressing his
gratitude for the film, saying that he had a niece
who was battling addiction and had tried to self harm
several times.
Speaker 1 (15:38):
He was hoping his wife could see the.
Speaker 2 (15:39):
Film and find some comfort in it, to which Rob replied,
thank you.
Speaker 1 (15:43):
That's the point.
Speaker 2 (15:45):
Reiner then told the reporter it's for them, but really
it's for us, to be honest. By the time we
got to the point and making the movie, it didn't
matter if we actually did because our relationship had gotten
so much closer.
Speaker 1 (15:58):
Nick said, I don't.
Speaker 2 (15:59):
Know anything, so I'll learn whatever he has to teach me.
And when I saw him do that and it was
something that I'm interested in, I was like, Wow, he
really knows a lot. And it made me feel closer
to him, and they tried to get to a better place.
Rob said working on the project, when Nick made him
a better father, he said, the whole process.
Speaker 1 (16:18):
For me, I can just speak for myself.
Speaker 2 (16:20):
It did make me understand him a lot more, and
I think it made me a better father.
Speaker 1 (16:25):
Hopefully it did. I don't know.
Speaker 2 (16:27):
Nick sett he never thought he'd capitalize on rehab. At
the time of this interview, Nick was sober. Back in
twenty sixteen, he told MPR, I'm a spoiled, white, rich kid,
from a Hollywood family. But I think it's even more
of a testament to how powerful drugs can be that
you don't care about any of that stuff. In another
interview the two did from May of twenty fifteen, Nick
(16:50):
sett he's lucky in the sense that his parents care
about him, and because of that, he would go out
and do drugs and then feel a tremendous amount of
guilt because he would think their thing thing about me
right now, they want me to do good. Nick was
a guest on that podcast called Dopey seven years ago
and as hosted by Dave Mannheim and Chris O'Connor. Chris
(17:10):
Sadley passed away in twenty eighteen, but Mannheim said Nick
wanted to have fun in recovery and wanted to be
a writer in the industry, but he since Nick felt
a lot of pressure being the grandson of Carl Reiner
and the son of Rob. A source told The New
York Post, I think Nick really resented his dad, or
maybe hated himself for not being as talented, prolific or
(17:32):
as beloved as his dad or granddad. The host of
the podcast, David Mannheim, said he started using drugs to
burn off his privilege, and Nick said, it's so interesting
you brought that up, because that's what was my experience.
I never wanted to identify with my father with money
or being judged on any of that stuff. I don't care.
(17:52):
It's never done it for me to brag about that stuff.
It makes me uncomfortable. The host introduced Nick on one
of the episodes of the show as a bit of
a train wreck and a good friend of the show.
Nick confirmed he was not sober at the time they
recorded this episode. He said he was smoking a little weed,
taking a little adderall, but he was not back on heroin.
(18:14):
He did say that a year and a half before,
he was back on dope and other things, which led
to a medical emergency. He told the host long story short,
I wound up having a cocaine heart attack. It happened
during an intervention as he was flying across the country
and he was passed out on the plane.
Speaker 1 (18:32):
Next thing.
Speaker 2 (18:33):
From there, he went to a detox facility and then
to a sober living facility in Maine. He said he
was happy for a while there until he got homesick.
He said, I just didn't want to be away from home.
I just wanted to come back home. I just wanted
to get back to my old life, like smoking weed,
kind of taking some pills, doing whatever I wanted. I
(18:53):
knew if I started to do it back in Maine,
I wouldn't really be able to do it right. I
knew if I smoked once or I took one pill,
they would send me to some sort of treatment. I
saw that happen with a ton of kids there, so
I was smart about it. I just stayed sober long
enough till I could go home, and I just went
home and did it. When asked how things were back
at home, he said they were great. His brother had
(19:15):
just moved back home, and he said that was pretty cool.
At the time, Nick said he was just smoking marijuana
and playing basketball. Talking about more harder drugs on the podcast,
Nick said he did heroin and pills. He said he
craved release and relief, and you don't get that from
smoking marijuana. When the host mentioned some movies of Robs
that he loved, Nick replied, it's a paradox. You're seeing
(19:39):
how they made everyone happy, and then I'm the one
that makes everyone unhappy. The question I love to hear
is you come from a background like this how could
you ever get into drugs? It's like, well, gee, I
don't even know where to start. But once back in
la he started writing scripts but struggled with being productive.
He did another episod pisode of the Adobe Podcast December
(20:02):
twenty one, twenty eighteen, and said he had been sober
for about a week. He said he didn't feel like
he needed drugs and it was the Christmas spirit and
he's feeling it. When Nick first appeared on Dobe, he
offered in the middle of their conversation to call his
dad and bring him on, but the host said that
wasn't necessary. But after their co host died in twenty eighteen,
(20:22):
Mannheim was concerned about the future of the podcast and
thought having Rob Reiner on could help the show get
some recognition. However, when he suggested this to Nick later
on in twenty eighteen, he said it must.
Speaker 1 (20:35):
Have offended Nick.
Speaker 2 (20:37):
Nick ended their communications at that point and did not
respond to what the host estimates were around one hundred
and fifty text messages that he sent to Nick over
the course of the next seven years. Now, back in
twenty fifteen, Nick founded an environmental nonprofit called Save Malibu,
but it didn't last a year. He was last seen
together with his family at the premiere of Spinal Tap
(20:59):
two The End Continues on September ninth. This was at
the Egyptian Theater in La Now since his Since his arrest,
Nick has retained Alan Jackson as his attorney a LATTI
you know. Jackson was a defense attorney for Karen Reid.
Nick was scheduled for a court hearing today at eleven
thirty Pacific, but didn't show since, according to Jackson, he
(21:23):
has not been cleared medically yet. Jackson said Nick's first
appearance could be as early as tomorrow, but that will
be decided on a day to day basis. He also
would not say who is paying Nick's legal fees. The
Los Angeles District Attorney had a press conference today. There's
nothing new on the investigation or details about the murder,
(21:45):
but they did say Nick will be charged today with
two counts of first degree murder with special circumstances of
multiple murders and using a dangerous and deadly weapon, which
would be the knife. The maximum penalties for these charges
or is their life without parole or even the death penalty.
There's no decision at this point on whether or not
(22:06):
they will seek death. California does have the death penalty
for first degree murder with those special circumstances, which is
multiple victims.
Speaker 1 (22:15):
As is the case here.
Speaker 2 (22:16):
Any evidence of mental illness will come out in court hearings,
however the defense chooses to do that. The DA said
any delays will be the same as any first degree
murder case. Now, I do think this probably will go
on a lot longer, as I think competency will play
a big issue in this case in general based on
its history, and the coroner is trying to determine a
(22:39):
time of death. They do not know if they were
killed Saturday or into Sunday, and we know their bodies
were found Sunday afternoon. So that's what I've learned today
and just going all over the internet listening to interviews,
reading interviews, and just trying to get a better sense
of the struggles that Nick has had and what his
(22:59):
parents have had to deal with since he was a
very young boy. I will keep my eye out for
any updates on the case. If anything pops up, I
will do another episode, or if it's something small, I'll
do a YouTube short. So don't forget to hit subscribe
by the way, just today we hit ninety thousand subscribers
on YouTube, which was such an amazing thing to wake
(23:20):
up to. So I appreciate all y'all for being here
and trust to me to bring you the latest.
Speaker 1 (23:25):
But that is it for today.
Speaker 2 (23:26):
I hope you guys have a good rest of your
evening and we will see us soon
What's to know?
Speaker 2 (00:00):
Alibyers. Welcome to another episode of Pretty Lies and Alibis.
Speaker 1 (00:04):
I'm Gigi. Good to have you here. It's Tuesday, December sixteenth.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
We're going to dive into the murders of Rob Reiner
and Michelle Singer. Reiner such a crazy and horrific case
and at the end of the day, if you shed
away the fact that Rob Reiner is who he is
and Michelle Singer was who she was in the Hollywood industry, unfortunately,
this is a tragic tale that millions of Americans deal
(00:28):
with on a daily basis, which is having a loved
one struggle with addiction and mental health issues.
Speaker 1 (00:35):
Not only that, but these murders.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Were domestic violence, and that's something that unfortunately we report
on way too often here. It just tends to get
a lot more publicity when it is somebody famous, but
no less tragic. Rob Reiner and his wife Michelle were
found murdered in their home. The LAPD received to call
at three thirty pm on Sunday, December fourteenth for medical aid,
(00:58):
but soon after the Robbery and Homicide Division were called
to the home for a death investigation. They confirmed the
couple was stabbed to death, while other reports are saying
their throats were slit. Investigators believe they were either killed
Saturday night or Sunday, and as we know, their troubled son,
Nick Reiner, has been arrested. Their daughter Rommie found the bodies,
(01:21):
and according to TMZ, she told police Nick had been
living with his parents and was dangerous. She said he
should be considered a suspect, so right off the bat
she had a good idea of who would have done this. Now,
Rob's family issued a statement that said, it is with
profound sorrow that we announced the tragic passing of Michelle
and Rob Reiner. We are heartbroken by this sudden loss,
(01:42):
and we asked for privacy during this unbelievably difficult time.
Robin Michelle met on the set of Rob's movie when
Harry met Sally. They married in nineteen eighty nine, and
at the time of their death they were married for
thirty six years. In fact, their relationship changed Rob's mind
to have Billy Christ and Meg Ryan's character end up
together now. During their marriage, Rob and Michelle had three
(02:05):
children together, Nick, Rommy, and Jake. Rob also has a
daughter from a previous marriage to Penny Marshall. Tracy Reiner.
He adopted her while the two were married, and they
maintained a very close relationship, and Tracy has had her
own career, being in a ton of movies, including playing
Betty Spaghetti in A League of their Own, which her
(02:27):
mother directed. She was also in Apollo thirteen, That thing
you do a lot of really great films, and she said,
I don't know what to say. I'm in shock. She
had just seen her father the day before he was killed.
Michelle was a producer and actress known for the Movie's Misery,
Albert Brooks, Defending My Life, and Mixed Nuts. Rob comes
(02:47):
from Hollywood Royalty. He is the son of comedian Carl Reiner,
who passed away in twenty twenty, and Rob's career in Hollywood.
Speaker 1 (02:55):
Began in the nineteen sixties.
Speaker 2 (02:57):
He and Steve Martin were writing partners on the Smothers
Brother's comedy Hour that ran from nineteen sixty eight to
sixty nine. He branched out into acting and during the
seventies he started as Meathead on the sitcom All in
the Family. He was actually chosen over Richard Dreyfuss and
Harrison Ford for that role. He won two Primetime Emmy
(03:18):
Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. That
series ran until nineteen seventy nine. He also had small
roles on hit shows such as Batman, That Girl, The
Beverly Hillbillies, and The Partridge Family. He also went on
to write for several shows, including Happy Days. Then he
wanted to direct, and his first big hit was This
(03:41):
is Spinal Tap, which is such a great movie, and
just recently he wrapped production and has been promoting Spinal
Tap to the End Continues, which is out now in theaters.
He directed huge blockbusters and beloved hits like stand By Me,
When Harry Met Sally, A Few Good Men, The Princess Bride,
(04:01):
and Misery. He also worked with his son Nick on
Being Charlie, a family drama that's rooted in autobiography. He
has also finished a follow up to Spinal Tap two
that will be released next year, where the fictional band
and other big names play at Stonehenge.
Speaker 1 (04:18):
Now.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
Robin Michelle's son, Nick, who is thirty two, is believed
to have left home after the murders and checked into
the Pure Side Hotel in Santa Monica around four am
on Sunday. An eyewitness said that Nick appeared to be
tweaking out when he was checking in. The hotel room
was said to be covered in blood. When staff went
inside the clean they found the shower was full of blood,
(04:40):
there was bloodstains on the bed, and the windows have
been covered with bed sheets. The LAPD responded to that
room Monday, December fifteenth, and they also interviewed employees there.
At some point on Sunday, Nick went to an area
near the University of Southern California's campus in University Park.
Speaker 1 (04:59):
He was arrested Sunday at.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
Nine point fifteen pm, and he was in the area
around a metro station near the campus. That arrest came
about six hours after the body of his parents were
found by his sister, Romi, and he is being held
without bond now. The Los Angeles Police Departments Gang and
Narcotics Division posted photos of Nick's arrest on their Facebook page.
(05:22):
Those have since been taken down, but at the moment,
he is at the Twin Towers Correctional Facility and he
is on self harm watch.
Speaker 1 (05:29):
In the search for Nick.
Speaker 2 (05:30):
The LAPD requested the help of the Marshal's Apprehension Task
Force helped find Nick.
Speaker 1 (05:36):
An assist in his arrest.
Speaker 2 (05:38):
Nick has had a lot of troubles in his life,
including homelessness and drug addiction. Now, there were some reports
that Billy Crystal saw the bodies before police arrived. That
has been debunked by Billy Crystal spoke person who said
he never did see the bodies, Thank goodness for that.
Also showing up the crime scene was Larry David from
Curb Your Enthusiasm, and understandably both he and Billy Crystal
(06:02):
look very upset.
Speaker 1 (06:03):
Now.
Speaker 2 (06:03):
Ronnie has an Instagram where you can see cute talks
with her dad and most recently, photos of a family
vacation they took at the end of November into the
beginning of December. She has photos of her and her
dad swimming in the ocean, and she captured the photo.
Thankful for family health and followers of any age. Not
long before the murders, rob his wife, Michelle, and Nick
(06:25):
all attended Conan O'Brien's Christmas party Saturday night, which was
the thirteenth. Other attendees said Nick seemed out of place.
He was dressed in a hoodie while everyone else was
dressed in suits and dresses. He also reportedly just roamed
around without interacting with many people, and people called his
behavior odd. They were said to be freaked out, and
(06:47):
a source told people that Nick was acting crazy and
was asking everyone there if they were famous. NBC News
is reporting that Nick is alleged to have interrupted a
conversation with Bill Hayter. When Bill Hayes told him the
conversation was private, Nick appeared to stand still and stare
before storming off.
Speaker 1 (07:06):
While at the party, Nick and.
Speaker 2 (07:07):
His parents got into what's been described as a very
loud and heated argument that was overheard by others in attendance.
One person said at one point Rob told Nick his
behavior was inappropriate, but they were unsure what the root
of the argument was about. Rob and his wife, Michelle
left after that argument, and it's not known exactly when
(07:28):
Nick left. This comes on the heels of another loud
verbal argument Rob and Nick had a few months ago
at a restaurant. Nick started screaming at his dad in
front of other customers at a very nice restaurant in
the Santa Monica Canyon. A lifelong family friend who lives
near the Wriiners told The New York Post that Rob
and Michelle were scared for Nick and his mental health
(07:48):
state was getting worse. He also said at his lowest point,
Nick was badly addicted to a combination of opiates and heroin.
The neighbor also said Nick was supposedly off drugs, but
it seemed clear he was not so much off of drugs.
The neighbor also said this is not the first time
Nick's been violent, and he mentioned an incident that happened
(08:09):
a few years back, but did not go into specifics.
Speaker 1 (08:12):
He said he just never thought it would get to
this point.
Speaker 2 (08:15):
Rob was always heartbroken that Nick could not beat his addiction,
and also they had argued about it for years now.
A security card that was hired by the Rhiners after
the Palisades fired said Nick had been living with his
parents for at least the past year, and he said
you could tell something was a little off with Nick.
He also said he was a very strange individual, but
(08:36):
he would never expect Nick to do this, and he
described Rob and Michelle as great, great people. He would
see them daily. When they saw him, they would ask
if he was okay or if he needed anything like food.
He said they were the sweetest people in the world,
and on one rainy day, Michelle gave him an umbrella
because he had left us at home. Another family friend
(08:57):
said his parents wanted Nick to get help of the facility,
but Nick wanted to get help at home and not
go to a treatment facility. A former schoolmate of Nick
said he had always been troubled, and when she saw
the news that Rob and Michelle had been killed, she
immediately knew it was Nick. Family sources told TMZ that
over the last few months, Michelle said they were at
(09:18):
their wits end with Nick's substance abuse and his mental
health issues. She felt they had tried everything and just
did not know what to do. Nick first got hooked
on drugs as a teenager and was frequently in rehab.
His first visit to rehab was when he was only
fifteen years old. His addiction ultimately led to him being
(09:40):
homeless and his relationship with his family got very distant.
Now I've read he's been in rehab anywhere between seventeen
to twenty times over the course of the years since
his addiction first started. The Daily Mail spoke with a
source close to the family who said that Nick was
a ticking time bomb. After his parents threatened to make
him leave their he home, Nick appeared on a podcast
(10:02):
that's called The Dope Podcast and recalled that he once
destroyed the guest house he was living in on his
parents' property while spun out on uppers like cocaine and
something else. Nick said he was self sequestered in the
guest house for days on end. His parents told him
he needed to leave, so Nick said he started punching things.
(10:23):
He told the podcast, I started with the TV, then
I went over to the lamp, and then progressively just
everything in the guest house got wrecked. The family friend
said that Nick would do meth and not sleep for days.
He would have outbursts, punched the walls, break things inside
the guest house, and his drug use was apparently getting worse.
(10:43):
The family friend said Nick would brag about getting away
with everything and said he stole money from his parents
for drugs, and he would talk about these things that
sobriety meetings and would laugh about it. He ultimately stopped
attending the meetings, saying it was too cultish. Page six
reported that Nick's relationship with his siblings has always been
rocky and that Nick's issues have been so much a
(11:06):
part of their life and has especially traumatized Rommy over
the years. A family friend says that Rob and Michelle
have always been honest with people about their struggles with Nick,
and people who spent time with the family saw at firsthand.
A former yoga instructor of Rob and Michelle's recalled Nick
interrupted pretty much every yoga session for at least twenty
(11:27):
minutes or so, and that often included intense screaming.
Speaker 1 (11:31):
A source told Page six.
Speaker 2 (11:33):
That Rommy has always been very close with her parents,
and watching her parents' pain over Nick has impacted her
and the whole family so much. Nick was said to
have had serious behavioral issues starting at a young age.
During a time of sobriety, Nick and Rob worked together
on a project of Nick's called Being Charlie. It's a
film that was loosely based on Nick's struggles with addictions
(11:56):
and homelessness. Rob directed the film and Nick wrote the
script along with a friend he met in rehab. Rob
said in an interview that they butted heads during the
writing process, but in the end, he said it helped
him to understand Nick Moore and it also helped him
to be a better father. And Nick said that their
bond came as a result of watching his dad in
(12:18):
his element, and he said he probably should have stayed
quiet and learned from him. He did say they never
connected while he was growing up, but making the movie
together was a huge turning point in their relationship and
the experience changed everything for them as father and son.
Rob said in an interview with Nick, they did fight
over things regarding the movie, but it actually made the
(12:41):
movie better. Eric O'Day was a stuntman on the movie
and said that Nick and Rob would argue in front
of the cast and crew during filming, and said there
was a very noticeable tension between the two while filming.
He said, you could tell Nick was spoiled and Rob
was just sick of his crap. I just assumed, whether
this is correct or not, the kid must be pushing
(13:01):
all of his buttons. He said there was hostility between
Nick and Rob from the first day on set, but
he also said it was clear how much Rob loved
Nick despite all the tension. He said Rob was doing
this movie for Nick, but it seemed Nick was just unappreciative.
In an interview with People magazine back in twenty sixteen,
Nick opened up about his struggles with addiction and homelessness,
(13:25):
which was echoed in that film being Charlie. He said,
because of his refusal to go to rehab, I was
homeless in Maine. I was homeless in New Jersey. I
was homeless in Texas. I spent nights on the street.
I spent weeks on the street. It wasn't fun. He
was also in and out of homeless shelters, and he
(13:45):
told people, if I wanted to do it my way
and not go to the programs they were suggesting, then
I had to be homeless. The two did an interview
for a YouTube channel called the AOL Build Series promoting
their film, where Nick said as a kid, they really
just didn't bond. He said, for instance, Rob liked baseball,
which he would watch with his other son Jake, and
(14:06):
Nick would watch basketball. Rob said while he had a
lot of experience making movies, when it came to making
the movie deeper and better, he actually relied on Nick
forgiving it the honesty and truth that it has going
back to when he was homeless. Nick said, I could
have died out there. It's all luck. You roll the
dice and hope you make it. Rob said it was very,
(14:28):
very hard going through it the first time, with these painful,
difficult highs and lows, and making the movie dredged all
that back up again, and he said rehab works for
some people, but it can't.
Speaker 1 (14:39):
Work for everybody.
Speaker 2 (14:40):
Rob told the La Times back in twenty fifteen that
they should have listened to Nick over the professionals when
Nick said rehab wasn't working for him. Rob said, we
were desperate, and because the people had diplomas on their wall,
we listened to them when we should have.
Speaker 1 (14:56):
Been listening to our son.
Speaker 2 (14:58):
Nick's mo Michelle added, we were so influenced by these people.
They would tell us Nick's a liar and that he
was trying to manipulate us, and we believe them. Nick
did say one good thing that came out of Rehab
was the film. He said, I got sick of it.
I got sick of doing that. I come from a
nice family. I'm not supposed to be out there on
the streets and in homeless shelters doing all these things.
(15:22):
He also said, I really wasn't sure I wanted to
do this, Meaning the interview, a person who had just
watched the movie walked up to the family expressing his
gratitude for the film, saying that he had a niece
who was battling addiction and had tried to self harm
several times.
Speaker 1 (15:38):
He was hoping his wife could see the.
Speaker 2 (15:39):
Film and find some comfort in it, to which Rob replied,
thank you.
Speaker 1 (15:43):
That's the point.
Speaker 2 (15:45):
Reiner then told the reporter it's for them, but really
it's for us, to be honest. By the time we
got to the point and making the movie, it didn't
matter if we actually did because our relationship had gotten
so much closer.
Speaker 1 (15:58):
Nick said, I don't.
Speaker 2 (15:59):
Know anything, so I'll learn whatever he has to teach me.
And when I saw him do that and it was
something that I'm interested in, I was like, Wow, he
really knows a lot. And it made me feel closer
to him, and they tried to get to a better place.
Rob said working on the project, when Nick made him
a better father, he said, the whole process.
Speaker 1 (16:18):
For me, I can just speak for myself.
Speaker 2 (16:20):
It did make me understand him a lot more, and
I think it made me a better father.
Speaker 1 (16:25):
Hopefully it did. I don't know.
Speaker 2 (16:27):
Nick sett he never thought he'd capitalize on rehab. At
the time of this interview, Nick was sober. Back in
twenty sixteen, he told MPR, I'm a spoiled, white, rich kid,
from a Hollywood family. But I think it's even more
of a testament to how powerful drugs can be that
you don't care about any of that stuff. In another
interview the two did from May of twenty fifteen, Nick
(16:50):
sett he's lucky in the sense that his parents care
about him, and because of that, he would go out
and do drugs and then feel a tremendous amount of
guilt because he would think their thing thing about me
right now, they want me to do good. Nick was
a guest on that podcast called Dopey seven years ago
and as hosted by Dave Mannheim and Chris O'Connor. Chris
(17:10):
Sadley passed away in twenty eighteen, but Mannheim said Nick
wanted to have fun in recovery and wanted to be
a writer in the industry, but he since Nick felt
a lot of pressure being the grandson of Carl Reiner
and the son of Rob. A source told The New
York Post, I think Nick really resented his dad, or
maybe hated himself for not being as talented, prolific or
(17:32):
as beloved as his dad or granddad. The host of
the podcast, David Mannheim, said he started using drugs to
burn off his privilege, and Nick said, it's so interesting
you brought that up, because that's what was my experience.
I never wanted to identify with my father with money
or being judged on any of that stuff. I don't care.
(17:52):
It's never done it for me to brag about that stuff.
It makes me uncomfortable. The host introduced Nick on one
of the episodes of the show as a bit of
a train wreck and a good friend of the show.
Nick confirmed he was not sober at the time they
recorded this episode. He said he was smoking a little weed,
taking a little adderall, but he was not back on heroin.
(18:14):
He did say that a year and a half before,
he was back on dope and other things, which led
to a medical emergency. He told the host long story short,
I wound up having a cocaine heart attack. It happened
during an intervention as he was flying across the country
and he was passed out on the plane.
Speaker 1 (18:32):
Next thing.
Speaker 2 (18:33):
From there, he went to a detox facility and then
to a sober living facility in Maine. He said he
was happy for a while there until he got homesick.
He said, I just didn't want to be away from home.
I just wanted to come back home. I just wanted
to get back to my old life, like smoking weed,
kind of taking some pills, doing whatever I wanted. I
(18:53):
knew if I started to do it back in Maine,
I wouldn't really be able to do it right. I
knew if I smoked once or I took one pill,
they would send me to some sort of treatment. I
saw that happen with a ton of kids there, so
I was smart about it. I just stayed sober long
enough till I could go home, and I just went
home and did it. When asked how things were back
at home, he said they were great. His brother had
(19:15):
just moved back home, and he said that was pretty cool.
At the time, Nick said he was just smoking marijuana
and playing basketball. Talking about more harder drugs on the podcast,
Nick said he did heroin and pills. He said he
craved release and relief, and you don't get that from
smoking marijuana. When the host mentioned some movies of Robs
that he loved, Nick replied, it's a paradox. You're seeing
(19:39):
how they made everyone happy, and then I'm the one
that makes everyone unhappy. The question I love to hear
is you come from a background like this how could
you ever get into drugs? It's like, well, gee, I
don't even know where to start. But once back in
la he started writing scripts but struggled with being productive.
He did another episod pisode of the Adobe Podcast December
(20:02):
twenty one, twenty eighteen, and said he had been sober
for about a week. He said he didn't feel like
he needed drugs and it was the Christmas spirit and
he's feeling it. When Nick first appeared on Dobe, he
offered in the middle of their conversation to call his
dad and bring him on, but the host said that
wasn't necessary. But after their co host died in twenty eighteen,
(20:22):
Mannheim was concerned about the future of the podcast and
thought having Rob Reiner on could help the show get
some recognition. However, when he suggested this to Nick later
on in twenty eighteen, he said it must.
Speaker 1 (20:35):
Have offended Nick.
Speaker 2 (20:37):
Nick ended their communications at that point and did not
respond to what the host estimates were around one hundred
and fifty text messages that he sent to Nick over
the course of the next seven years. Now, back in
twenty fifteen, Nick founded an environmental nonprofit called Save Malibu,
but it didn't last a year. He was last seen
together with his family at the premiere of Spinal Tap
(20:59):
two The End Continues on September ninth. This was at
the Egyptian Theater in La Now since his Since his arrest,
Nick has retained Alan Jackson as his attorney a LATTI
you know. Jackson was a defense attorney for Karen Reid.
Nick was scheduled for a court hearing today at eleven
thirty Pacific, but didn't show since, according to Jackson, he
(21:23):
has not been cleared medically yet. Jackson said Nick's first
appearance could be as early as tomorrow, but that will
be decided on a day to day basis. He also
would not say who is paying Nick's legal fees. The
Los Angeles District Attorney had a press conference today. There's
nothing new on the investigation or details about the murder,
(21:45):
but they did say Nick will be charged today with
two counts of first degree murder with special circumstances of
multiple murders and using a dangerous and deadly weapon, which
would be the knife. The maximum penalties for these charges
or is their life without parole or even the death penalty.
There's no decision at this point on whether or not
(22:06):
they will seek death. California does have the death penalty
for first degree murder with those special circumstances, which is
multiple victims.
Speaker 1 (22:15):
As is the case here.
Speaker 2 (22:16):
Any evidence of mental illness will come out in court hearings,
however the defense chooses to do that. The DA said
any delays will be the same as any first degree
murder case. Now, I do think this probably will go
on a lot longer, as I think competency will play
a big issue in this case in general based on
its history, and the coroner is trying to determine a
(22:39):
time of death. They do not know if they were
killed Saturday or into Sunday, and we know their bodies
were found Sunday afternoon. So that's what I've learned today
and just going all over the internet listening to interviews,
reading interviews, and just trying to get a better sense
of the struggles that Nick has had and what his
(22:59):
parents have had to deal with since he was a
very young boy. I will keep my eye out for
any updates on the case. If anything pops up, I
will do another episode, or if it's something small, I'll
do a YouTube short. So don't forget to hit subscribe
by the way, just today we hit ninety thousand subscribers
on YouTube, which was such an amazing thing to wake
(23:20):
up to. So I appreciate all y'all for being here
and trust to me to bring you the latest.
Speaker 1 (23:25):
But that is it for today.
Speaker 2 (23:26):
I hope you guys have a good rest of your
evening and we will see us soon
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