Donald Trump Doubles Down on Rob Reiner Attack 1 Day After His Murder: ‘I Wasn’t a Fan of His at All’

President Donald Trump is standing by his controversial reaction to the deaths of Hollywood director Rob Reiner and his wife, Michele Singer Reiner.

The couple were found dead inside their Brentwood, Calif., home on Sunday, Dec. 14. Their 32-year-old son, Nick, has been taken into custody in connection with their deaths. Sources close to the family say Nick killed his parents.

Speaking with reporters in the Oval Office on Monday, Trump declined to offer condolences and instead defended a social media post he made earlier in the day.

“Well I wasn’t a fan of his at all,” Trump said when asked about the backlash. “He was a deranged person, as far as Trump is concerned.”

He went on to reference Reiner’s past criticism of him, saying Reiner had accused him of being “a friend of Russia” and “controlled by Russia,” and tying it to what Trump described as “the Russia hoax.” Trump claimed the director “hurt himself, career-wise,” and repeated the phrase “Trump Derangement Syndrome” while describing Reiner’s political commentary.

“So I was not a fan of Rob Reiner at all, in any way, shape or form,” Trump said. “I thought he was very bad for our country,” before moving on to another question.

Trump’s comments followed a Truth Social post on Monday morning in which he appeared to suggest Reiner’s political views contributed to his death.

“A very sad thing happened last night in Hollywood,” Trump wrote, calling Reiner “once very talented,” and attributing the circumstances to anger Reiner “caused others” through what Trump labeled “TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROME,” sometimes referred to as “TDS.” The post ended with: “May Rob and Michele rest in peace!”

Reiner, 78, was a longtime critic of Trump and an outspoken supporter of progressive causes. Two months before his death, he gave an interview to MS Now host Ali Velshi in which he warned that the U.S. political climate under Trump’s second term felt “beyond McCarthy era-esque.” In the interview, Reiner claimed the country was moving toward autocracy and argued that two forces he associated with authoritarian rule—control of media and military presence in public life—were becoming more prominent.

Maria Shriver, described as a longtime friend and neighbor of the Reiners, condemned Trump’s statements in a series of X posts on Monday. She called the remarks “absolutely disgusting” and urged people not to look away, emphasizing the family’s grief and arguing that the moment called for compassion rather than politics or speculation.

Shriver also stressed that Rob and Michele Reiner were devoted parents who loved their children and tried to support them, saying it was “not a time for judgement” but for “understanding” and “love.”