How Rob Reiner pulled out all the stops to make movie with son about addiction — and it flopped terribly
In 2015, director Rob Reiner filmed a movie his controversial son Nick had written with a friend from rehab, hoping the project would mend their strained relationship – but it ended up being a complete flop and did little to bridge the gap between them.
The father‑son team produced the semi‑autobiographical drama “Being Charlie,” in which an 18‑year‑old addict is forced into rehabilitation by his dad, a former movie star running for Congress.
Reiner spared no expense on the shoot. He brought in “Princess Bride” star Cary Elwes to play himself, and the up‑and‑coming actor Nick Robinson—known from 2015’s “Jurassic World”—to portray Nick.
The cast also featured Common, fresh off his role in the Academy‑nominated film “Selma,” and the production was shot by award‑winning cinematographer Barry Markowitz, famed for his work on “Sling Blade” and a later Reiner documentary about Albert Brooks.
Despite the high‑profile talent, the film failed at the box office. Critics blasted it for an overload of clichés in its script, and according to The Numbers, it earned a mere $30,000.
The collaboration was troubled by ongoing disagreements. “At times, it was really rough” navigating how to portray their own relationship, Rob said during a Q&A at the time.
Nick, now 32, has long felt eclipsed by his 78‑year‑old dad and their late, celebrated comedian grandfather, Carl Reiner, according to a source speaking to Page Six.
He is currently facing a murder charge for allegedly slitting the throats of both Rob and his mother Michele after a violent confrontation last weekend. “I think he really resented his dad—or maybe hated himself—for not being as talented, prolific, or beloved as his dad or granddad,” the source added.
In September 2015, the month the film premiered, Rob opened up about his son’s repeated rehabilitation attempts. “When Nick would tell us that it wasn’t working for him, we wouldn’t listen,” he told the Los Angeles Times.
“We were desperate, and because the people had diplomas on their wall, we listened to them when we should have been listening to our son. We were so influenced by these people. They would tell us he’s a liar, that he was trying to manipulate us. And we believed them.”
After the film’s release, Nick told BUILD Series that the two hadn’t really bonded during his childhood, but he believes shooting the picture brought them closer: “It really clicked for me because we didn’t bond a lot as a kid,” he said.
“He really liked baseball, I liked basketball, and he could watch that with my brother—baseball. But I just, when I saw him [working on the film], it was something that I’m interested in, I was like, ‘Wow, he really knows a lot,’ and it made me feel closer to him.”
Rob later replied that it was odd Nick talked about it in that way because they had shared the experience: “Even though I’ve had a lot of experience making movies, and I said this to him many, many times, that he was the heart and soul of the film.”
“So, when it came to making the film deeper and better, I would have to really defer to him,” he added. “I relied on him for giving it the honesty and the truth that it has.”
Rob, 78, and his wife Michele, 68, were found dead at their Brentwood home in Los Angeles on Sunday.
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