Nick Reiner, who dealt with addiction since he was a teen and is now charged with killing his parents, was “entitled,” according to a source close to the family.
“Nick wanted to live a life that didn’t exist. He was entitled,” the source tells PEOPLE. “He didn’t want to do any work but expected to be loved the way the rest of his family was.”
On Sunday, Dec. 14, beloved sitcom actor-turned-director Rob Reiner and his wife Michele were found dead inside their Los Angeles home. Nick, 32, was arrested later that night and has since been charged with two counts of first-degree murder in connection with their deaths. Nick appeared in court Dec. 17, and his lawyer Alan Jackson declined to enter a plea for his client. His arraignment will continue on Jan. 7.
Rob and Michele, who were 78 and 70, respectively, at the time of their deaths, “felt enormous guilt for so long that they couldn’t help Nick get his life together,” the source says.
Nick, who’d been in and out of rehab over 18 times by the age of 22, co-wrote a movie loosely based on his addiction experience that dad Rob directed, 2015’s Being Charlie. The source says Rob and Michele “hoped Being Charlie would help build Nick’s confidence in the industry and in himself.”
During interviews promoting Being Charlie, Nick addressed his “dark years,” and Rob spoke about feeling “desperate” to help his child during the difficult time.
While on a podcast back in 2016, Nick said he thought growing up in the shadow of a famous father and grandfather — Carl Reiner, who died in 2020 — led him to abusing drugs.
“I had no identity, and I had no passions,” he admitted at the time. “And I think the reason I had no identity was because I have a famous dad and a famous grandpa, and that fame sort of informs who you are. So I wanted to edge out my own identity with a more rebellious, angry, drug-addicted sort of persona.”
In PEOPLE’s latest cover story, one insider close to the family said the Reiners “were such a tight-knit family” who “did everything together.” Still, “they could never reach stability with Nick. They tried everything — giving him space, keeping him close — but his struggles are so deep.”
“It’s just a parent’s worst nightmare,” added the insider. “They were such lovely people and tried in every way to help their son.”
Rob and Michele’s other two children, son Jake, 34, and daughter Romy, 28, spoke out about the “horrific and devastating loss of our parents” in a statement shared Dec. 17.
“Words cannot even begin to describe the unimaginable pain we are experiencing every moment of the day.” The siblings added, “They weren’t just our parents; they were our best friends.”
In a BUILD Series interview alongside Nick in 2015, Rob explained that the “idea of tough love and you have to be a certain way, it’s not my nature, it’s not the way I am built.”
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