For Romy Reiner, December has traditionally been a month filled with celebrations and personal milestones. Her 28th birthday, typically a time of joy coming just two days after Christmas, will be overshadowed by tragedy this year.

This December marks her first birthday without the cherished presence of her parents, the renowned Hollywood director Rob Reiner and his wife Michele, who tragically passed away last weekend under horrific circumstances.

Adding to the heartbreak, Romy will also face this difficult time without her brother, Nick Reiner. Known for his struggles with addiction, Nick had been living in their parents’ guesthouse at the age of 32. He is now in police custody, facing charges for the double murder of their parents.

As Romy prepares to mark her birthday on December 27, it will be less than two weeks since she discovered the bodies of her parents. Found in their $13 million Los Angeles mansion, the couple had suffered fatal neck wounds and were reportedly already showing signs of rigor mortis when Romy made the grim discovery last Sunday afternoon.

Romy’s birthday on December 27 won’t even be two weeks since she found their bodies, reportedly already showing signs of rigor mortis, slashed at the neck in their bed at their $13 million Los Angeles mansion last Sunday afternoon.

So who can Romy turn to at this unimaginably difficult time?

The aspiring actress and model is understood to be leaning heavily on her 34-year-old brother Jake Reiner – a former journalist who has also now turned his hand to acting – as they both navigate this new era of familial notoriety and horrific grief.

According to insiders who have spoken to the Daily Mail, Romy’s emotional ruination at the hands of her troubled brother Nick has been years in the making.

Romy and her brother Nick pictured by their mother

Romy and her brothers Nick, middle, and Jake in Washington DC

One well-placed source tells us that Romy often felt ‘scared’ of her brother and what he might be capable of – so much so that she allegedly told police he ‘should be a suspect’ almost immediately after discovering her parents’ bodies. Nick was arrested within hours.

‘It feels like Romy has been scared of Nick since she was a child,’ the insider said.

‘Even before his drug addiction, his outbursts were frightening because they seemed to come out of nowhere. She tried to stay out of his way as much as she could but it wasn’t easy.

‘Nick was so volatile that she didn’t think it was a good idea for him to be living in a guesthouse [which he once smashed up in a cocaine-fueled fit of rage] on the grounds of her parents’ home.

‘She didn’t even like the idea of him living across the street from her. But she knew they moved him in so they could keep a close eye on him and give him a roof over his head.’

Romy lives directly across from her parents’ mansion in Brentwood. And, whether through proximity or a shared need to coalesce around Nick – who struggled with anger from a young age and had been to rehab at least 18 times – the family unit was close.

‘There were plenty of times when Romy would be upset with Nick, and naturally that made her much closer to Jake,’ said a second insider. 

‘He was feeling the same way about Nick, and Romy was able to talk about it when she didn’t want to burden their parents. She and Jake are numb right now.’

Of course, the relationship with Nick was complicated. Romy would tell people he was her ‘best friend’, and clearly did everything she could to help him.

She and her parents ‘tried to include’ Nick in family gatherings as much as possible – or, at least, during periods ‘when they were talking to him’, the first insider said.

‘Romy loved Nick and was very aware of her brother’s struggles and she would always do everything to help him out, and they never gave up. Anytime that her parents looked overwhelmed or asked for help, Romy and Jake were there for Nick. It wasn’t perfect by any means, but she never disowned Nick.’

A source tells the Daily Mail that Romy ‘didn’t even like the idea’ of Nick living in her parents’ guesthouse

Romy, 27, posted photos of her vacation with her parents just weeks before their bodies were found at their Los Angeles home on Sunday

But it may all have taken its toll.

In a 2022 episode of the All of Us podcast, Romy admitted that, at one point, she had been smoking up to 25 joints of marijuana a day and was on antidepressants.

‘I was pretty addicted,’ she said. ‘I hate marijuana. Addiction is very real. Let’s say I was abusing it, for sure. 

‘Fifteen to 25 joints a day, just blitzed all the time. That’s a very long time. Dude, I was really f***ed up, and now I smoke, let’s say tops, three joints a day at the end of the night.’

It recalls a resurfaced YouTube skit from 2016, posted by Nick during a period when he was trying his hand at comedy, and featuring a brief appearance from Romy, who happily smokes alongside her brother in what looks to be their parents’ backyard. 

She had been on and off the antidepressants, she said, ‘since I was 15 or 16’.

Her depression, she added, had been so ‘severe’ when she was at high school that some days she couldn’t get out of bed.

And then there were the night terrors and panic attacks over a period of many years that left her feeling as if she were ‘fighting for [her] life every night’.

‘I could have a dream where I have to fight off twelve huge men with guns to save my life and run,’ she explained. ‘I have to literally murder people to survive in my dreams.’

More recently, Romy has been candid about her battle with endometriosis, posting out inspiring updates to her 160,000 Instagram followers.

Multiple sources tell the Daily Mail that Romy often felt torn between her love for her brother Nick and her fear of his ‘volatile’ outbursts

The actress and model’s close relationship with her parents was even further evidenced when she moved across the street from their $13 million home in Brentwood, California

It is understood that the family were a tight-knit unit 

In a surprising revelation, shared again on that podcast episode, Romy told how, despite her father’s stellar career – first as an actor on hit sitcom All in the Family and later as director of classics such as When Harry Met Sally – he too struggled privately with demons.

‘My dad has had pretty much clinical depression his entire life, since he was a kid, and that’s how I’ve felt and have been diagnosed whatever with that,’ Romy said.

‘I don’t know if it’s a genetic thing, if it can be passed down… growing up he would go into these kinds of states where he would just be really quiet and do his thing… There were so many times where I would say, what’s wrong? Why aren’t you engaging? Why aren’t you talking?’

Before tragedy struck, Romy and her brothers had enjoyed a pampered upbringing thanks to their father’s estimated $200 million fortune, attending the progressive Wildwood School in LA where Hollywood giants Meryl Streep, Steven Spielberg and Demi Moore also sent their kids. 

Romy grew up with friends such as actor Patrick Schwarzenegger (son of Arnold) and comic Dan Aykroyd’s daughters Belle and Stella.

‘I didn’t know her well, but I remember her as a sort of a sweet, spirited girl with a whimsical sense of humor,’ a former Wildwood teacher told the Daily Mail.

After graduating from Wildwood, Romy studied improvisational comedy with The Groundlings and the Upright Citizens Brigade and took acting classes. And it’s perhaps no surprise that she has already racked up a few major credits, which include the 2023 Netflix movie You People starring Jonah Hill and Eddie Murphy.

She has also written a half-hour comedy pilot titled Born Again Virgin, which was optioned for development at Warner Bros Television in 2020.

A 2016 YouTube video shows Romy enjoying a smoke with her brother Nick

Romy grew up immersed in the celebrity world thanks to the success of her father. She has a close friendship with Dan Aykroyd’s daughter Stella (pictured)

On Instagram, Romy has shared snaps with fellow filmmaker Alex Silberberg

While Romy has never publicly confirmed a relationship status, she has been close with Silberberg over the years

And she will star in an upcoming short film, titled The Auschwitz Bagel, by filmmaker Alex Silberberg, who has recently emerged as an important figure in her life.

Reports have surfaced of an unnamed ‘roommate’ who called emergency services for Romy after she discovered her parents’ bodies last weekend.

And while Romy has never publicly confirmed any relationship status, social media posts have appeared to capture a close bond with Silberberg over the years – with the pair enjoying getaways to Montana, snuggling close for selfies while dressed in their swimwear and shared photo-ops with Romy’s beloved dog, Billie. 

It will surely be some solace that she has him, and her brother Jake, by her side as she marks a very lonely birthday next week.