Rob Reiner was scared of son Nick after altercation at Christmas party, had confided in friends hours before murder

Rob Reiner with son Nick

A volatile argument at a Hollywood Christmas party has reportedly been linked to a shocking family tragedy that led to the alleged murder of filmmaker Rob Reiner and his wife Michele Singer Reiner.

According to a report in TOI, tensions flared during holiday gathering at Conan O’Brien’s home after Reiner’s son, Nick Reiner, allegedly behaved erratically, alarming guests and reigniting long-standing concerns about his mental health and possible drug relapse.

Friends present at the party said Rob Reiner appeared shaken and fearful of his son Nick following the incident.

By the following day, those concerns reportedly escalated into a nightmare.

According to police Rob Reiner and his wife and photographer Michele Singer Reiner, were found brutally killed at their Los Angeles home.

Los Angeles police are set to present a case to prosecutors following Nick Reiner's arrest in the killings of his parents, Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner, which stunned their communities in Hollywood and Democratic politics, where both were widely beloved.

Prosecutors are set to decide whether and how to charge 32-year-old Nick Reiner, who is being held in jail without bail. He was arrested several hours after his parents were found dead in their home in the upscale Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles on Sunday, police said.

Sources told The Post that a 'very loud argument' involving Nick had taken place at the Christmas party the night before.

Friends claim the dispute emerges from Nick’s refusal to re-enter rehab despite fears that he had relapsed.

Nick has reportedly undergone at least 17 stints in rehabilitation since the age of 15. “He was freaking everyone out, acting erratically, and asking people if they were famous,” a source told People magazine.

A longtime family friend said Rob Reiner had confided to others at the gathering that he and Michele were getting more worried about their son’s deteriorating mental state.

“They were scared for Nick,” the friend said.

Another known friend to the couple revealed that disagreements over treatment had plagued the family for years. "They wanted him to get help at a facility, but he insisted on recovering at home. That conflict never really went away," the source said.

It was Nick’s sister, Romy Reiner, 28, who had reportedly discovered her parents’ bodies at their home on Sunday afternoon and told investigators that her brother should be considered a suspect, describing him as “dangerous,” according to sources.

Nick was arrested hours later, charged with murder, denied bail, and placed on suicide watch.

Rob Reiner was the Emmy-winning star of the sitcom “All in the Family” who went on to direct films including “When Harry Met Sally..." and ”The Princess Bride" He was an outspoken liberal activist for decades. Michele Singer Reiner was a photographer, movie producer and advocate for LGBTQ+ rights. They had been married for 36 years.

Representatives for the Reiner family did not respond to requests for comment, and it wasn’t clear if Nick Reiner had an attorney who could speak on his behalf. Police haven’t said anything about a motive for the killings.

Investigators believe Rob and Michelle Singer Reiner died from stab wounds, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official, who was briefed on the investigation, could not publicly discuss the details and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity.

The killings were especially shocking given the warm comic legacy of the family. Rob Reiner was the son of comedy legend Carl Reiner, who died in 2020 at age 98.

Kathy Bates, who won an Oscar as the star of Rob Reiner's 1990 film “Misery,” was among those paying tribute to the couple.

“I loved Rob," Bates said in a statement. “He was brilliant and kind, a man who made films of every genre to challenge himself as an artist. He also fought courageously for his political beliefs. He changed the course of my life. Michele was a gifted photographer.”

Bill Clinton called the couple “good, generous people who made everyone who knew them better.”

“Hillary and I are heartbroken by the tragic deaths of our friends Rob and Michele Reiner," he said in a statement. “They inspired and uplifted millions through their work in film and television.”

Three months ago, Nick Reiner was photographed with his parents and siblings at the premiere of his father's film “Spinal Tap 2: The End Continues.”

He had spoken publicly of his struggles with addiction, cycling in and out of treatment facilities with bouts of homelessness in between through his teen years. Rob and Nick Reiner explored — and seemed to improve — their relationship through the making of the 2016 film, “Being Charlie.”

Nick Reiner co-wrote and Rob Reiner directed the film about the struggles of an addicted son and a famous father. It was not autobiographical but included several elements of their lives.

“It forced us to understand ourselves better than we had,” Rob Reiner told the AP in 2016. “I told Nick while we were making it, I said, ‘You know it doesn’t matter, whatever happens to this thing, we won already.’"

Rob Reiner was long one of the most prolific directors in Hollywood, and his work included some of the most memorable and endlessly watchable movies of the 1980s and ’90s, including “This is Spinal Tap” and “A Few Good Men.”

He met Michele Singer Reiner on the set of “When Harry Met Sally...," and their meeting would inspire the film's shift to a happy ending, with stars Billy Crystal — one of Reiner's closest friends for decades — and Meg Ryan ending up together on New Year's Eve.

The Reiners were outspoken advocates for liberal causes and major Democratic donors.

President Donald Trump on Monday blamed Rob Reiner’s outspoken opposition to the president for the actor-director’s killing, delivering the unsubstantiated claim in a social media post that seemed intent on decrying his opponents even in the face of a tragedy. (With AP Inputs)