Michael Douglas recalls having a 'heartbreaking confessional' with Rob Reiner about their troubled sons' 'serious drug issues' - as Nick Reiner awaits trial for his parents' murder

Michael Douglas recalled having a 'heartbreaking confessional' with Rob Reiner about their troubled sons' 'serious drug issues' in his autobiography One Helluva Ride.In an excerpt from the memoir published in The Los Angeles Times, the Basic Instinct actor, 82, detailed speaking about their families - with Rob's son Nick and Michael's eldest son, Cameron both suffering substance abuse issues. Actor and director Rob, 78, and his wife Michele Singer Reiner, 70, were found dead at their Brentwood, Los Angeles home last December and Nick has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder over their deaths.Previously, Rob had discussed Nick's substance abuse issues and rehab stays. The pair made the 2015 film, Being Charlie, about his experiences. Michael wrote: 'We both had sons with serious drug issues and we both, at times, had been at the end of our rope. It was a heartbreaking confessional for us, but I know we gave each other some measure of comfort during the hard times.'Cameron, now 47, struggled with drug addiction and was arrested in 2009. He spent seven years in prison, with two in segregated housing and has been sober since his release from jail and penned a book, Long Way Home, in 2019. Michael Douglas recalled having a 'heartbreaking confessional' with Rob Reiner about their troubled sons' 'serious drug issues' in his autobiography One Helluva Ride (Rob and Michael pictured in 2014) Cameron Douglas now 47, struggled with drug addiction and was arrested in 2009. He spent seven years in prison, with two in segregated housing and has been sober since his release from jail and penned a book, Long Way Home, in 2019 (Cameron and Michael in 2004) In an excerpt from the memoir published in The Los Angeles Times, the Basic Instinct actor, 82, detailed speaking about their families - with Rob's son Nick and Michael's eldest son, Cameron both suffering substance abuse issues (Rob and Nick pictured in 2016)Michael and Rob's professional and personal friendship goes back years, with the former starring in 1995's The American President before Michael starred in 2014 film And So It Goes, which was directed and produced by Rob.Last year, following Rob's death, Michael told CBS: 'With this terrible tragedy, we're realising how much pressure he was dealing with in his personal life with his son. I also had a son who had drug issues...'And I'm happy to say he's overcome them and he's living a prosperous life. But we talked a lot about that: What you can do as a parent, what you can't do...'So knowing with all of that going on behind the scenes, this was a man who always gave you his best.' Michael's words come after Nick's attorneys contended the accused murderer should have access to a trust fund created for him as a baby, arguing a 'substantial portion' of it consists of money left to him by his grandfather Carl Reiner.For almost a year, Nick has been locked up at Twin Towers Correctional Facility following accusations he murdered his parents.He has pleaded not guilty to two counts of murder, with the special circumstance allegations of multiple murders and murder by means of lying in wait.Nick has been battling to gain access to a trust worth roughly $1.6m to pay for legal fees, insisting the funds legally belong to him as he prepares to stand trial over the killings. Michael starred in 2014 film And So It Goes, which was directed and produced by Rob, during which they forged a bond (Michael pictured in 2019) The trustee responsible for the account cites California's Slayer Statue as one of the reasons the money has been withheld from Nick, which can prevent someone who unlawfully kills another person from financially benefiting from that death.But in court documents obtained by The Daily Mail, lawyers for Nick claim the statue does not apply in this particular case and that much of the funds in the trust were actually left to him by his grandfather, Hollywood legend Carl, and not his parents.'The Slayer Statute prevents a killer from receiving a benefit created by the killing. It takes away what a person receives because someone died; it does not divest a person of his pre-existing property,' the documents explain.It later adds: 'A substantial portion of the funds currently held in Nick’s Trust did not even come from Nick’s parents – it was money that Nick’s grandfather, Carl Reiner, left to Nick in his estate plan, with similar distributions to his other grandchildren... For almost a year, Nick Reiner has been locked up in a Los Angeles jail cell following accusations he murdered his filmmaker father Rob and mother Michele Singer 'This includes at least $325,017.49, which was transferred into the Trust account at J.P. Morgan Chase Bank on December 24, 2024...'The Successor Trustee’s counsel has informed Petitioner that, in addition to that sum, other distributions to Nick from his grandfather may have similarly been deposited into accounts held by this Trust...'It is not clear how much of the money in the Trust came from his grandfather, or why that money was deposited into Nick’s Trust account, rather than to Nick individually...'It is Petitioner’s understanding that the Successor Trustee is still looking into these matters. Either way, the Slayer Statute has no application to that money. Nick’s grandfather died on June 29, 2020. Nick is not accused of causing his death. Nick says a 'substantial portion' of his trust comes from his grandfather, the late Carl Reiner (Carl pictured with his son Rob Reiner in 2017)'Money that was left to Nick by his grandfather is not money received by Nick from or through his parents. To the extent the funds Nick received from his grandfather are Nick’s personal assets, they remain Nick’s and should be segregated and released from this Trust.'Even if they were properly held by the Trust, the Slayer Statute does not supply a basis for withholding them, and they should be distributed in accordance with Paragraphs 4.4 and 4.5 of the Trust.'Michael Douglas's One Helluva Ride (Headline Publishing Group) goes on sale today in the UK. Get it at the Mail Bookshop here.