Rob Reiner’s eldest daughter is speaking out after her father and his wife Michele were allegedly murdered in their Brentwood home on Sunday.
Reiner’s son, Nick, is being held on $4 million bail in the Los Angeles Police Department jail in connection to the crime.
“I came from the greatest family ever,” Tracy Rainer told NBC News following the tragedy. “I don’t know what to say, I’m in shock.”
Tracy, 61, told the outlet that the family had gathered the day before, although it’s unclear if she was in attendance.
The family shared their own statement on Sunday following the heartbreaking news. “It is with profound sorrow that we announce the tragic passing of Michele and Rob Reiner,” a family spokesman told Variety. “We are heartbroken by this sudden loss, and we ask for privacy during this unbelievably difficult time.”
Reiner adopted Tracy, his eldest of four children, when he was married to his ex-wife, actress Penny Marshall, who passed away in 2018.
The Reiner Family
With his second wife, Michele, Reiner has three children: sons Nick and Jake, and daughter Romy. Reiner, Michele and their kids were photographed in September at the premiere of his film Spinal Tap II: The End Continues.
Only weeks ago, Romy, 28, shared several posts to Instagram from a tropical vacation with both of her parents. “Thankful for family, health, and followers of any age. Not thankful for the president and the state of our country,” she captioned one carousel of photos.
Reiner’s Relationship With Nick
Reiner’s relationship with Nick was previously highlighted when the two were promoting their film, Being Charlie, in 2015. The film was co-written by Nick, 32, and based upon his own experience with substance abuse and being in and out of rehab.
“The program works for some people but it can’t work for everybody,” Reiner said of his own situation with his son, at the Toronto Film Festival while promoting the film, per The Los Angeles Times. “When Nick would tell us that it wasn’t working for him, we wouldn’t listen. We were desperate and because the people had diplomas on their wall, we listened to them when we should have been listening to our son.”
“We were so influenced by these people,” Michele added. “They would tell us he’s a liar, that he was trying to manipulate us. And we believed them.”
Reiner, who directed the film, also said in a BUILD Series interview that Being Charlie ultimately improved the duo’s relationship. “The whole process for me, I can just speak for myself, it did make me understand [Nick] a lot more and I think it made me a better father, hopefully it did.”
Nick shared similar sentiments, saying, “I think the bonding came, not from the story itself, but from the fact that we were working on a movie together,” Nick added. “I could see him in his – I would think, the form he can express himself the best – which is making movies, cause he has so much experience. And so seeing that sort of turned me around to be like, ‘Okay…I should probably shut up and listen to him because he knows a lot more about this…I don’t know anything.’”
“We didn’t really bond a lot as a kid,” he continued. “Like, he really liked baseball, I liked basketball, and he could watch that with my brother.”
Nick repeated that seeing his father in his element ultimately brought the two closer together. “When I saw him do that, and it was something I’m interested in, I was like ‘Wow, like he really knows a lot.’ And like, it made me feel closer to him.”
