In the weeks leading up to the horrific Brentwood bedroom slaughter of Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner, those closest to the family say their son, Nick Reiner, was spiraling in a way no one could ignore.
Nick, 32, who remains behind bars without bail at the Twin Towers Correctional Facility, reportedly suffers from schizoaffective disorder — and Radar has learned that a last-minute change in his medication may have triggered a terrifying descent.
A source close to the situation said Nick had recently switched meds because he didn’t like the weight gain. “Once that happened, he went completely off the rails,” the insider claimed.
The Mayo Clinic describes schizoaffective disorder as a condition involving both schizophrenia symptoms — like hallucinations and delusions — and major mood swings such as depression or mania. Treatment usually requires a delicate mix of antipsychotics and mood stabilizers, and the disorder can be even harder to manage when substance abuse is involved.
Nick, who has cycled through rehab at least 18 times, may have also relapsed before the murders, according to several people familiar with the family. Some insiders believe he snapped in a meth-fueled rage.
“Nick is totally detached from reality,” said one source. “He can’t seem to comprehend what he’s done.”
Meanwhile, prominent attorney Alan Jackson, who withdrew from the case earlier this month, insisted his former client is “not guilty of murder” under California law — a stance that has sparked fierce debate.
One of Nick’s old roommates from a pricey Malibu rehab center claims he wasn’t shocked when the Reiner murders hit the news.
“As soon as I saw that Rob Reiner and his wife were murdered, I knew exactly who it was,” said Wyoming restaurateur Danny Svilar, who roomed with Nick when they were 15.
Svilar said Nick often expressed how much he “hated his parents,” especially his father, and doubts an insanity plea would match what he witnessed years ago.
He recalled Nick as a teen with “no sense of gratitude” and said Rob and Michele were endlessly patient, showing up for every therapy session. “They just wanted him to get help,” he said.
But Svilar also remembered Nick’s frightening temper. After Svilar casually compared him to the late Jett Travolta, Nick allegedly snapped and tried to get physical until staff intervened.
“There was a side of him that could just flip,” he said. “It was chilling.”
Despite Nick’s anger and addiction battles, Svilar said the Reiners were hands-on parents desperate to save their son. They even bonded with other families in the program — Svilar recalled playing frisbee with Rob himself.
“They did everything they could for him,” he said. “He had no cause to hate them.”
When news of the murders broke, Svilar texted old rehab friends, many of whom immediately assumed the same thing: “Everybody knew it was him.”
The exact combination of relapse, mental illness, and medication issues that may have fueled Nick’s alleged breakdown remains under investigation — but those who watched his long struggle say the warning signs were there all along.
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