REPORT: Nick Reiner Had Reputation for Violence Before Parents’ Killings

Friends, neighbors, and former classmates of Nick Reiner say warning signs had long surrounded the troubled son of famed Hollywood director Rob Reiner, with several saying they were not shocked when authorities charged him in the brutal killings of his parents.

Nick Reiner, 32, has been accused of fatally slitting the throats of his father, 78, and mother, photographer Michele Singer Reiner, 68, inside their multimillion-dollar Brentwood, Los Angeles home. While police have not publicly detailed a motive, those who knew the family say the suspect had a long history of violence, addiction, and instability.

“This is not the first time their son has been violent,” a longtime neighbor told the New York Post, declining to give his name. “I know of another incident a few years back with Nick, but I won’t say more than that. I just never thought it would ever get to this point.”

The neighbor described Nick as “always troubled,” saying his parents had spent years trying to help him overcome drug addiction.

“Rob was always heartbroken that his son couldn’t beat his addiction,” the resident said. “I know they wanted him to get help, go to rehab, but he wanted to get help while at home. He did not want to get treatment at a facility. And I know they have argued about that for years.”

Another former classmate echoed those concerns, telling the Post she “instantly knew it was him” when news broke that Rob and Michele Reiner had been found dead.

“He had always been troubled,” she said, adding that Nick had been in and out of rehab since he was just 15 years old.

LOS ANGELES – APR 11: Rob Reiner, Family at the 0th Anniversary Screening Of “When Harry Met Sally” at the TCL Chinese Theater IMAX on April 11, 2019 in Los Angeles, CA

A second neighbor of the Reiners also told the outlet, “I wasn’t surprised,” when Nick was charged in the killings, though the resident declined to elaborate further.

According to a security guard hired to patrol the neighborhood following looting after January’s Palisades Fire, Nick had been living with his parents for at least a year before the killings.

“You could tell something was a little off with him,” said Trevor Taufahema, who regularly worked near the home. “He’s a strange individual, you know? You can tell he had, like, some problems with drug addiction.”

Taufahema said Nick appeared to be homeless at times and had one friend he frequently invited to the house.

“I’d always see [Nick] sneak off with him,” the guard said. “I don’t know what they were doing.”

Despite those observations, Taufahema said he never personally witnessed any violence and described Rob and Michele Reiner as extraordinarily kind.

“Great people, great people,” he said. “Every time they see me in my car outside, they always ask if I was OK, if I needed anything, food.”

He recalled Michele once giving him an umbrella during a rainstorm. “I still have it to this day,” he said.

Multiple sources say tensions had been building for some time, and investigators are now reviewing accounts of a public dispute that unfolded just hours before the couple’s deaths, as they work to establish a clearer timeline of events.

Authorities are continuing to investigate the deaths after the couple were found inside their Brentwood home on Sunday afternoon. Police initially responded to a reported medical emergency but quickly determined the deaths were suspicious. Law enforcement sources say both victims suffered fatal stab wounds, though the official cause of death remains pending confirmation from the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner.

Detectives noted there were no immediate signs of forced entry, shifting focus early in the investigation to individuals known to the couple. Nick Reiner was detained within hours and remains the central suspect as investigators work to establish a full timeline and motive.