What did Michele Reiner say in her last email? Final message surfaces amid investigation into Reiner killings

Hours before her death alongside her husband Rob Reiner, Michele Reiner reached out to a close prison pen-pal, reflecting on a stage performance that had brought them together years earlier.

According to NBC News on Monday, Jan. 5, Michele Reiner sent a correspondence to a friend, Nanon Williams, an inmate currently appealing his murder conviction, with whom the couple developed a close friendship over the years beginning in 2016.

In the letter sent on Dec. 13, the producer wrote to Williams:

"I'm sure you have heard from Tera [Williams' wife], but the show last night was amazing. We've seen it several times but he keeps improving it and it gets better and better. He has more videos of you which are great. He's so talented. We all said that we can't wait to watch it with you."

Michele Reiner continued, discussing the audience at the Dec. 12 event, which included Billy Crystal, a good family friend to the Reiners, and Georgetown professor Marc Howard.

"Your whole family was there, it was great. I loved your mother. She is so beautiful and I told her that she must have done something right because you turned out so well. And your sisters were there and all the kids. And Marc Howard and his girlfriend. We also brought Billy Crystal, who loved it and was so moved by it."

Speaking to NBC News, Nanon Williams discussed that his companionship with Rob Reiner and Michele Reiner was akin to a family, and also extended to their children, especially Romy. The couple, who had treated him like their own son, also invited him to live with the Reiners if he ever got out of prison.

Further, even the couple's youngest, Romy, treats Nanon Williams as her big brother. She shared with the outlet:

"My parents spoke about him with such love. He has taught me more about life and human compassion than anyone I've ever met. He became like family."

---

Nanon Williams on his friendship with Rob Reiner and Michele Reiner: "An integral part of my life"

Nanon Williams' friendship with Rob Reiner and Michele Reiner began in 2016 after seeing the stage play Lyrics From Lockdown, a one-man theater show that chronicles wrongful incarceration and racial profiling in the U.S. justice system.

Williams is currently serving his 34th year in a Texas prison for a murder he says he didn’t commit. He was initially sentenced to the death penalty after being charged when he was 17, meaning he had spent his entire adulthood behind bars.

In his interview with NBC News, he shared that the couple became "an interal part of my life," adding:

"They became a part of me."

The kinship was also evident in 2024, when the couple advocated for Nanon Williams seeking a new trial by writing letters defending his character and standing his ground after a report from the Texas Forensic Science Commission stated that the ballistics evidence used in Williams' conviction was proven inaccurate by later testing.

In his NBC News talk, Nanon Williams spoke fondly of the couple:

"Rob and Michele didn't want credit for trying to help me. It was just because they loved me."

Also Read: How are Jake and Romy Reiner handling their parents' deaths? Spokesperson shares update on Rob and Michele's children

---

On Dec. 14, Rob Reiner and Michele Reiner were found lifeless in their Los Angeles home.

The couple's son, Nick Reiner, was later charged with two counts of first-degree murder, with his first arraignment scheduled on Jan. 7, 2026.

Following the family tragedy, Rob and Michele's eldest and youngest, Jake and Romy, issued a joint statement, where they expressed their gratitude and asked for privacy amid the dark chapter of their lives.

"Words cannot even begin to describe the unimaginable pain we are experiencing every moment of the day. The horrific and devastating loss of our parents, Rob and Michele Reiner, is something that no one should ever experience. They weren't just our parents; they were our best friends. We are grateful for the outpouring of condolences, kindness, and support we have received not only from family and friends but people from all walks of life."

Also Read: What calls did police receive about Rob Reiner's home before the killings? Welfare check and mental health incidents reported in 2019