On Oct. 23, Alec Baldwin misfired a prop gun, accidentally killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injuring director Joel Souza on the set of the movie Rust. Hutchins (42) was hit in the chest and Souza (28) was wounded on the shoulder.
According to FoxNews, after confirming the firearm that was handed to Baldwin by assistant director David Hall was claimed “cold” or “unloaded”; Baldwin shot the gun killing the cinematographer and wounding the director. The gun was handled by Hannah Gutierrez Reed who set up the prop gun away from the set because of COVID-19 protocols.
Santa Fe County Sheriff’s officials said Halyna Hutchins and Joel Souza, were shot Thursday on the rustic film set in the desert on the southern outskirts of Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Hutchins was airlifted to the University of New Mexico Hospital, where she was pronounced dead by medical personnel. The Sheriff’s department said Souza was taken by ambulance to Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center and has been released.
Despite the statement by Rust Movie Productions stating that the cast and crew safety is their top priority, crew members had concerns regarding safety prior to the event. The production on Rust has been paused until the investigation is complete. The Rust Production Team has offered support resources to cast and crew to assist in processing the lost of their colleague. They also made a statement that they will be “conducting an internal review of our procedures while production is shut down.”
Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza stated, “In reference to possible charges, it’s too early right now in the investigation to comment on charges at this point.” The Sheriff’s Office has said that more search warrants could be coming. Police spokesperson Jian Rios also told Deadline on October 26 that the probe is “going to be ongoing for a while.”
A GoFundMe was created by Hutchins’ family and has raised over $100,000. Many in the film industry have also paid tribute to Halyna Hutchins for her influential work.