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Alec Baldwin on Friday expressed “shock and sadness” over an incident on the set of his film, Rust, where a gun he was handling misfired, killing the cinematographer and injuring the director.
Director of photography Halyna Hutchins, 42, died after being injured Thursday when the prop gun was discharged by Baldwin, the $6 million-budgeted Western’s producer and star. Hutchins had been transported by helicopter to the University of New Mexico Hospital, where she was pronounced dead, according to the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office.
“There are no words to convey my shock and sadness regarding the tragic accident that took the life of Halyna Hutchins, a wife, mother and deeply admired colleague of ours. I’m fully cooperating with the police investigation to address how this tragedy occurred,” Baldwin said via Twitter. “I am in touch with her husband, offering my support to him and his family. My heart is broken for her husband, their son, and all who knew and loved Halyna.”
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The second victim was the film’s director, Joel Souza, 48, who was taken by ambulance to Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center. On Friday, Rust actor Frances Fisher tweeted that Souza had been released from the hospital; Christus St. Vincent would not confirm, citing patient privacy, and Fisher’s representatives did not return a request for comment.
Baldwin was interviewed Thursday by investigators, Juan Ríos, a spokesman for the sheriff’s office, told The Hollywood Reporter. Ríos said Friday that interviews were ongoing and evidence was still being collected. No charges had been filed.
According to a search warrant filed in a Santa Fe court, an assistant director unwittingly handed Baldwin a loaded weapon and told him it was safe to use in the moments before the actor fatally shot a cinematographer.
According to The Associated Press, the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office obtained the warrant Friday so investigators could document the scene at the ranch outside Santa Fe, N.M. They sought Baldwin’s blood-stained costume for the film Rust as evidence, as well as the weapon that was fired, other prop guns and ammunition, and any footage that might exist.
According to the records, the gun was one of three that the film’s armorer, Hannah Gutierrez, had set on a cart outside the wooden structure where a scene was being acted. The gun was grabbed from the cart by assistant director Dave Halls and brought inside to Baldwin, unaware that it was loaded with live rounds, a detective wrote in the search warrant application.
The New Mexico Occupational Health and Safety Bureau is also investigating the incident, the office said in a statement on Friday. “The production company reported the fatality and injury to OHSB last night, in accordance with workplace safety laws,” the office said in a statement. “No additional information will be released at this time, pending completion of the investigation.”
A spokesperson from Rust said in a statement Thursday: “The entire cast and crew has been absolutely devastated by today’s tragedy, and we send our deepest condolences to Halyna’s family and loved ones. We have halted production on the film for an undetermined period of time and are fully cooperating with the Santa Fe Police Department’s investigation. We will be providing counseling services to everyone connected to the film as we work to process this awful event.”
In the days before the incident, the film’s crew had been complaining of poor working conditions, and some were replaced by non-union workers, according to a source close to the production. Much of the crew walked off the set over these concerns on the morning before the shooting, which occurred during an interior scene at a church.
“The safety of our cast and crew is the top priority of Rust Productions and everyone associated with the company,” production company Rust Movie Productions, LLC said in a statement. “Though we were not made aware of any official complaints concerning weapon or prop safety on set, we will be conducting an internal review of our procedures while production is shut down.”
Fisher wrote in an Instagram tribute to Hutchins on Friday that “I loved watching you work: Your intense focus and your vibrant command of the room.” She added, “My prayers are with your family and with all who love and miss you.”
On Friday, IATSE said it “mourned” the death of Hutchins, a Local 600 member, and would be “activating our partnerships across the industry to provide support and resources to our sisters, brothers, and kin.” Liz Schuler, the president of America’s largest labor federation, the AFL-CIO, tweeted that the incident on Rust “was a tragedy and a heartbreaking example of why production companies MUST take the safety & protection of our filmmakers more seriously.”
Firearm accidents on Hollywood sets are extremely rare, but do occur. In 1993, Brandon Lee, the son of famed martial arts star Bruce Lee, was accidentally shot and killed on the set of The Crow by another actor who fired a revolver that had been improperly prepared.
In 1984, actor Jon-Erik Hexum was involved in a prop gun incident on the set of CBS’ Cover Up. During a break in filming, Hexum accidentally shot himself while playing with the firearm, not realizing a blank was still in the prop gun. He died from his injuries six days later at the age of 26.
The official Twitter page for Brandon Bruce Lee posted: “Our hearts go out to the family of Halyna Hutchins and to Joel Souza and all involved in the incident on “Rust”. No one should ever be killed by a gun on a film set. Period.”
In Rust, Baldwin stars as infamous Western outlaw Harland Rust. When his estranged grandson is convicted of an accidental murder and sentenced to hang, Rust travels to Kansas to break him out of prison. The two fugitives must then outrun U.S. Marshal Wood Helm and bounty hunter Fenton “Preacher” Lang.
The film also stars Fisher, Jensen Ackles and Travis Fimmel.
Oct. 22, 3:06 p.m. Updated with information about crew complaints.
Oct. 22, 4:20 p.m. Updated with OHSB investigation.
Oct. 22, 7:12 p.m. Updated with information about search warrant being filed in a Santa Fe court.
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