The eldest son of late Hollywood director Rob Reiner has reflected on his "living nightmare" since his parents were killed and his brother Nick was charged with their murder.
Reiner, 78, and his wife Michele Singer Reiner, 70, were found dead from apparent stab wounds in their home in Los Angeles last December.
Their 32-year-old son, Nick, has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder.
Jake Reiner, 34, reminisced on how his "world collapsed" after the loss of his parents, which he described as "too devastating to comprehend", in a heartfelt tribute to his Substack newsletter on Friday.
Reiner, who is one of three siblings, said that his sister Romy will tell her story "in her own way and in her time," as he recalled the moment on 14 December when he found out his parents had died.
He wrote: "My world, as I knew it, had collapsed.
"Nothing can prepare you for what it feels like to lose both parents instantly at the same time. It's too devastating to comprehend.
"I still wake up every morning having to convince myself that, no, it’s not a dream. This truly is my living nightmare.
"I can’t even begin to put myself in my parents’ shoes, but one thing I keep coming back to is how frightened they must have been. They were the last people in the world to deserve what happened to them.
"They deserved to be loved, they deserved to be respected, and above all they deserved to be appreciated for how much they gave to all three of us and to the world."
In the essay, which was accompanied by photos of Jake with his parents, the actor praised his mother as the "backbone and the heart" of his family and his father as a "beautiful person" and his "hero."
He continued: "When you are not living through a tragedy the specific way Romy and I are, it’s hard to wrap your head around just how horrific this has been.
"Because they weren’t your parents, it might be easier to move forward or even forget for a moment about what happened that day, but for us, it’s every single day."
Reiner concluded the post by emphasising how "horrendous" it has been since his parents died and said his goal in writing is to "offer some insight" into the incident.
He said: "We lost more than half of our family that night in the most violent way imaginable.
"Sure, any loss of a parent is devastating, but nothing compares to losing both of them at the same time and, on top of that, having your brother be at the centre of it. It’s almost too impossible to process."
The actor and writer also shared a post on Instagram to accompany the essay and said that his upcoming birthday on 2 May will be his first without his parents.
Source: Press Association
