American actress and activist Jane Fonda has been rocked by the untimely deaths of Rob Reiner and his wife, Michele Singer Reiner.
The two-time Oscar winner said she met with the longtime couple just one day before they were found dead at their Los Angeles home on December 14.
On December 15, she further noted, “I saw them the night before last looking healthy and happy. I am reeling with grief. Stunned”.
Whilst reflecting on the night the pair shared a passion for activism, she added, “Rob and Michele Reiner were wonderful, caring, smart, funny, generous people, always coming up with ideas for how to make the world better, kinder”.
According to the sources, the Reiners had attended a star-studded Christmas party hosted by Conan O’Brien on December 13, sources confirmed to multiple outlets.
The following day, police responded to the Reiners’ residence in the Brentwood neighbourhood around 3:40 pm, according to a press release from the Los Angeles Police Department. Upon arrival, officers “discovered two victims, who were subsequently identified as Robert and Michele Reiner”.
“As a result of the initial investigation, it was determined that the Reiners were the victims of homicide,” authorities said in an LAPD press release. “The investigation further revealed that Nick Reiner, the 32-year-old son of Robert and Michele Reiner, was responsible for their deaths.” Rob and Michele appeared to have suffered stab wounds, a source told NBC News.
Nick was arrested and booked on suspicion of murder, according to the LAPD. Though his online jail records initially showed bail was set at $4 million, authorities have since confirmed that the screenwriter is being held without bond.
E! News has reached out to Rob and Michele’s other kids, Jake Reiner and Romy Reiner, 27, for comment on Nick’s arrest but hasn’t heard back. However, the family said in a statement to Variety shortly following Rob and Michele’s passing, “We are heartbroken by this sudden loss”.
Tracy Reiner, who Rob shared with his late ex-wife Penny Marshall, also expressed her shock in the wake of the tragedy.
She told NBC News on December 14, “I came from the greatest family ever. I don’t know what to say. I’m in shock”.