Did rob reiner delete a post on X (formerly twitter) and when was it posted?
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Executive summary
Rob Reiner did not post the viral anti‑Trump tweet that circulated as a screenshot; fact‑checkers and archived replies show the image was fabricated and Reiner himself said “This is not my account” when similar fake posts circulated on Jan. 20, 2023 (Lead Stories; Reuters noted by secondary sources) [1] [2]. After Reiner and his wife were found dead on Dec. 14–15, 2025, X accounts purporting to be his proliferated and at least one X account tied to him was deactivated shortly after his death [1] [3] [4].
1. The claim and its origin: a resurfaced fake screenshot
A screenshot circulated after Reiner’s death that purported to show him writing “Until Trump goes to prison I will no longer be posting on Twitter”; multiple outlets and fact‑checkers determined that screenshot was fabricated and not authored by Reiner [1] [2]. Lead Stories documents that nearly identical fake messages circulated as far back as January 2023, when Reiner publicly denied ownership [1].
2. Reiner’s own response in 2023: “This is not my account”
Reporting and fact‑checks indicate that when a similar fake post appeared on Jan. 20, 2023, Rob Reiner replied to say the account was not his, undercutting the authenticity of the screenshot that later resurfaced [1] [2]. Available sources do not mention any verified original post by Reiner containing the quoted language.
3. Post‑mortem confusion: impersonation and a deactivated account
After the tragic deaths of Rob Reiner and his wife in mid‑December 2025, several X accounts claiming to be Reiner’s surfaced and drew widespread engagement; some of those accounts appear to have been created earlier in 2025 by fans or impersonators, and at least one account was deactivated shortly after his death [3] [1]. Lead Stories reports Reiner’s X account was deactivated shortly after his death; other outlets document public confusion over which accounts were authentic [1] [3].
4. The broader context: a charged political moment
The fake screenshot reappeared amid intense political reaction to Reiner’s homicide, including President Trump’s controversial posts about the director’s death and rapid national coverage linking the killings to political commentary [5] [6]. That atmosphere amplified the spread of misleading images and created incentives for partisan actors to push emotional, unverified content [5] [6].
5. Who amplified the fabrications — and how they were debunked
Prominent figures shared the fabricated screenshot after Dec. 15, 2025; fact‑checkers including Reuters and outlets cited in reporting reviewed archives and prior replies from Reiner to conclude the image was inauthentic [2] [1]. Lead Stories and other fact‑checks point to the Jan. 2023 thread in which Reiner denied authorship as key evidence disproving the screenshot’s provenance [1].
6. What we can and cannot say from available reporting
Available sources confirm the screenshot is fake, that Reiner denied ownership in 2023, and that X account activity around his death included impersonation and a later deactivation [1] [3]. Available sources do not mention a verified original tweet from Reiner with the quoted wording, nor do they provide the exact posting time for any authentic tweet matching the screenshot — because none exists in the cited reporting [1] [2].
7. Why this matters: misinformation mechanics and the grieving period
The episode shows how fabricated social‑media images can be recycled years later and weaponized during high‑emotion events; outlets and fact‑checkers relied on archival replies from Reiner to rebut the claim [1] [2]. When a public figure dies amid a criminal investigation, impersonation and misattribution spread quickly — readers should treat screenshots without archival links or contemporaneous timestamps with skepticism [1] [3].
Sources cited in this report: Lead Stories on the fake tweet and Reiner’s denial [1]; multiple news reports documenting the Reiners’ deaths, account impersonation and deactivation including The News International on account creation/impersonation [3], CNN on the deaths and investigation [4], Washington Post and The Guardian on the political fallout [5] [6], and reporting citing Reuters/fact‑checks about the fabricated screenshot shared by Laura Loomer [2].