Jake Reiner has spoken publicly for the first time about the trauma of losing both parents to an alleged murder carried out by his own brother.
Jake Reiner, 35, sat down with KABC-TV’s Mark Cota-Robles in Los Angeles last week, eight months after Rob Reiner, 77, and Michele Reiner, 76, were fatally stabbed in their Brentwood home on December 14. His younger brother Nick Reiner, 32, was arrested within hours and later indicted on two counts of first-degree murder with special circumstance allegations of lying in wait.
“My parents had unconditional love for all three of us,” Jake said, reflecting on his upbringing in the supportive household the couple created for their three children.
“It’s been 8 months. It feels like 8 years at the same time. And it also feels like 8 minutes,” he explained. “Because every moment that I wake up, I’m reminded of my reality.”
That reality began with a frantic phone call from his sister, Romy Reiner, the youngest of the three siblings. “Romy told me our dad was dead and then she said, ‘I can’t find mom’,” Jake recounted during the broadcast interview.
Within hours of the discovery, police arrested Nick Reiner, who has pleaded not guilty and remains in custody in Los Angeles without bail. Earlier this year, Nick’s original criminal defense attorney, Alan Jackson, withdrew from the case, transferring representation to the public defender’s office.
For Jake, the arrest effectively erased another member of his immediate circle. “Yeah. I mean, he’s in jail, so…,” Jake said, visibly searching for words when discussing his brother. “You know, it’s… I physically lost my parents. And then Nick was arrested. And now it’s me and Romy.”
In the viral moment that has defined this family’s public tragedy, Rob and Michele Reiner were found dead in their Brentwood residence on December 14, with authorities quickly identifying their youngest son as the suspect. The brutal nature of the killings — a double stabbing allegedly carried out by someone lying in wait — shocked Hollywood and beyond, given Rob Reiner’s decades-long career as an actor, director, and outspoken political activist. The case has since moved through preliminary legal stages, with Nick Reiner making his first court appearances this year before the public defender’s office took over his representation.
Amidst the ongoing legal proceedings, Jake and Romy are focusing on their parents’ philanthropic legacy. Jake discussed their collaboration with the Children’s Institute to launch the Michele and Rob Reiner Champion for Change Award, with family friend Jamie Lee Curtis slated to be the inaugural recipient.
The television interview follows a lengthy essay Jake published in April, where he laid bare the anger and sorrow of navigating life without his parents’ guidance. “My parents won’t be at my wedding, they won’t get to hold their future grandchild, and they won’t get to see me have the successful career I’m still seeking,” he wrote. “It simultaneously breaks my heart and enrages me.”
He went on to note that the specific circumstances of their deaths have made the grieving process horrific. “Sure, any loss of a parent is devastating, but nothing compares to losing both of them at the same time and, on top of that, having your brother be at the center of it,” Jake wrote. “It’s almost too impossible to process.”
Nick Reiner is scheduled to appear in court for a pretrial hearing, where prosecutors have yet to announce whether they will seek the death penalty.