Conan O’Brien spoke in a new interview about being “caught up in” the scandal surrounding the murders of Rob Reiner and Michelle Reiner.
The comedian confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter on Monday that the two men were killed hours after attending a Christmas party with his son Nick, who is charged with the double murders.
“Quite simply, we had a party with some really good friends, and the next day this horrible thing happened,” O’Brien told the outlet.
“Whatever hardship my wife and I have experienced having our names attached to us, it pales in comparison to the tragedy for our family and the scale of Rob and Michelle’s deaths,” he continued.
The former “Conan” host said, “If you’re a famous person, sometimes your name gets mixed up in things.”
However, he clarified, “It’s not a big deal. I’m just sad that he’s gone.”
The Emmy winner previously broke her silence about the “terrible” scandal to The New Yorker in February.
He recalled “the experience of saying goodnight to someone and leaving, only to find out the next day that they are gone.”
Mr O’Brien “was in a state of shock for quite some time afterwards”.
He and his wife, Liza Powell O’Brien, were “close friends” with the Reiners, praising them as “lovely people” and “seeing them often” before his death on December 14.
The director and his wife were murdered in their Los Angeles home on December 14th, aged 78 and 70, respectively.
The pair married in May 1989 and had three children together: Jake, 34, Nick, 32, and Romy, 28.
Nick has been incarcerated at the Twin Towers Correctional Facility since the middle child was arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree murder (he has pleaded not guilty).
The Daily Mail reported last week that Nick’s only visitor to prison was attorney Kimberly Greene.
His siblings did not mention Nick in their emotional statement about Rob and Michelle’s “horrific” deaths in December 2025.
“They were more than just our parents, they were our best friends,” Jake and Romy wrote at the time. “We are now asking for respect and privacy, for speculation to be tempered with compassion and humanity, and for our parents to have a wonderful life and be remembered for the love they gave.”
Although the two have stayed out of the spotlight as they work through their grief, they have repeatedly put up a united front during their time in Malibu, California.
