Alec Baldwin's 'prop firearm' kills one, injures another

Sheriff's office: Alec Baldwin discharged prop gun that killed crew member, wounded director

Baldwin is one of the film's star actors and producers. He went to the sheriff's office willingly and provided a statement to investigators, sheriff's office spokesman Juan Ríos said.

www.santafenewmexican.com

archive.md/jNQZQ

Actor Alec Baldwin discharged a "prop firearm" that killed a cinematographer and injured a the director of the movie Rust, being filmed on a set south of Santa Fe, a county sheriff's office spokesman said late Thursday.

Halyna Hutchins, 42 and the director of photography for the movie, died at University of New Mexico Hospital in Albuquerque. The film's director, Joel Souza, was hospitalized in Santa Fe, Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office spokesman Juan Ríos said.

A source closed to the investigation said Baldwin, 63, was questioned by investigators late Thursday and was seen by a New Mexican reporter and photographer in tears.

Investigators are still trying to determine if the incident was an accident, Ríos said. No charges have been filed, and the investigation remains open, Ríos wrote in a news release.

The prop was fired at Bonanza Creek Ranch, where filming was underway, the sheriff's office said in an early evening news release. Baldwin stars in the production.

Hutchins died from her injuries after she was flown to University of New Mexico Hospital, according to the sheriff's office. Souza was taken to Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center, where he is receiving emergency care, the sheriff's office said. Attempts to get comment from Baldwin were unsuccessful.

“We received the devastating news this evening, that one of our members, Halyna Hutchins, the Director of Photography on a production called ‘Rust’ in New Mexico died from injuries sustained on the set,” John Lindley, the president of the International Cinematographers Guild Local 600, and Rebecca Rhine, the executive director, said in a statement, as reported by Variety. “The details are unclear at this moment, but we are working to learn more, and we support a full investigation into this tragic event. This is a terrible loss, and we mourn the passing of a member of our Guild’s family.”

Deputies were investigating how the accident occurred and "what type of projectile was discharged," the sheriff's office said in an earlier news release.

Rust Movie Productions did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Filming for Rust was set to continue into early November, according to a news release from the New Mexico Film Office. It's described as the story of a 13-year-old boy left to fend for himself and his younger brother following the death of their parents in 1880s Kansas, with New Mexico doubling for Kansas.

Guns firing blanks have been blamed for deaths in past movie productions. Online Hollywood news site Deadline reported, "Actor Jon-Erik Hexum was killed Oct. 18, 1984, on the set of the TV series Cover Up when he accidentally shot himself in the head with a gun loaded with blanks. And in 1993, Brandon Lee, the son of martial arts legend Bruce Lee, died after he was shot in the head by a gun firing blanks on the set of The Crow. Both incidents were determined to have been accidents."

This is a developing story and will be updated.

 

[Jet Fuel Johnny]

People are a-logging him because he regularly a-loggs people he doesn't like. People are laughing at him because it's funny when a smug asshole steps in shit. People are pissed that he's not facing charges because if billy-bob from Arkansas did something stupid and shot his co-worker he'd absolutely be arrested and charged even if it was an obvious accident.

Billy-Bob would be in jail tonight with a half million dollar bail.

So, let me get this straight:

SUPPOSEDLY he cocked the hammer and the hammer dropped, on an old revolver that may or may not have been a replica of the Old West six shooters?

Those things were notoriously cranky in the first place, even with people that only knew those things (source: reading too many True West magazines and books as a teen), and cocking back the hammer would have rotated the cylinder anyway. If he had too much pressure on the trigger, and man, could those old revolvers be finicky (source: Owned a replica US Army Colt at one time) just what would seem like normal trigger pressure on a modern weapon would be enough for the well worn trigger mechanism to go.

NOT something you want to have even blanks in if you can help it. Dummy bullets for the cylinder for the "it's fully loaded" close up shot, but even then, handle it carefully or the ghost of Billy the Kid will load that fucker.

If you're only used to modern prop guns, and this is a replica revolver, it's a WORLD of difference.

I'm not defending or villainizing him here. Yeah, I think he's a twat, but he killed someone and has to live with it.

 

[AirdropShitposts]

 

[Dude Snakes]

I'm torn over what to feel about this. On one hand I intensely dislike Alec Baldwin, this may end his career which I love, on the other he killed one and the other is/was in the hospital so who knows might up two people dead. Found myself laughing at the situation then feeling guilty... as I should still fuck Alec Baldwin.

 

[Art Kassul]

Alec Baldwin-Narrated Doc on Flint Water Crisis Picked Up by Cargo Film & Releasing (EXCLUSIVE)

U.S. documentary specialists Cargo Film & Releasing have snapped up world rights to an Alec Baldwin-narrated feature documentary investigating the water poisoning crisis in Flint, Michigan. (Wa…

variety.com

Alec Baldwin-Narrated Doc on Flint Water Crisis Picked Up by Cargo Film & Releasing​

No wonder he's so blast-happy, he was spending a lot of time in Flint, Michigan, a previous two-time winner of Murder Capital of America, and all-around unsafe shithole.

The documentary debuts next week. His street cred in Flint is now cemented. What is his rapping name? We need some No Limit style covers for his debut album.

 

[SITHRAK!]

if you use guns for anything you need to know safe handling yourself not just the person who handed it to you, and especially if there is pointing and firing blanks at people safe handling would include checking the barrel and whatever blank firing adapter, you checking it not just whoever handed it to you.

You think that Baldwin would know shit about firearms and firearm safety?
He's a progressive liberal. Guns to him are evil. Even though half the film he's been in use them.
Real firearms are what other people use to protect him.

 

[ABE LINN COHN]

Involuntary manslaughter for Alec, and either homicide or manslaughter for the dipshit who loaded the gun. At least if the official story is to be believed.

 

[Neil]

Yeah, just like how I shouldn't have a seatbelt since I've never crashed my car, and I shouldn't have a fire extinguisher in the house since I've never had a fire.
Idiot.

Your seatbelt is constantly in use whenever you hit the brakes though. it holds you to the seat so you don't zoom headfirst into the windshield.
Also I don't know any people who own an "extensive" collection of fire extinguishers. Generally they only have one.

Idiot.

 

[Akashic Retard]

Now seems like as good a time as any to dig this back up, I'm sure there are people that haven't heard it. Alex Baldwin apparently hates his teen daughter, doesn't know how old she is, and intends to straighten her ass out.

 

[Jaded Optimist]

Those things were notoriously cranky in the first place, even with people that only knew those things (source: reading too many True West magazines and books as a teen), and cocking back the hammer would have rotated the cylinder anyway. If he had too much pressure on the trigger, and man, could those old revolvers be finicky (source: Owned a replica US Army Colt at one time) just what would seem like normal trigger pressure on a modern weapon would be enough for the well worn trigger mechanism to go.

NOT something you want to have even blanks in if you can help it. Dummy bullets for the cylinder for the "it's fully loaded" close up shot, but even then, handle it carefully or the ghost of Billy the Kid will load that fucker.

What are you talking about? Those guns are crazy reliable. You mention having a hair trigger on your US army colt, and then later how a replica would make a world of difference, but you said your Colt was a replica...so which is it?
The hair trigger thing would be an issue if the sear spring was worn (depending on the gun), but the armourer should have noticed that.

 

[Snekposter]

Billy-Bob would be in jail tonight with a half million dollar bail.

So, let me get this straight:

SUPPOSEDLY he cocked the hammer and the hammer dropped, on an old revolver that may or may not have been a replica of the Old West six shooters?

Those things were notoriously cranky in the first place, even with people that only knew those things (source: reading too many True West magazines and books as a teen), and cocking back the hammer would have rotated the cylinder anyway. If he had too much pressure on the trigger, and man, could those old revolvers be finicky (source: Owned a replica US Army Colt at one time) just what would seem like normal trigger pressure on a modern weapon would be enough for the well worn trigger mechanism to go.

NOT something you want to have even blanks in if you can help it. Dummy bullets for the cylinder for the "it's fully loaded" close up shot, but even then, handle it carefully or the ghost of Billy the Kid will load that fucker.

If you're only used to modern prop guns, and this is a replica revolver, it's a WORLD of difference.

I'm not defending or villainizing him here. Yeah, I think he's a twat, but he killed someone and has to live with it.

When an actual person handles a piece of potentially-lethal equipment "Man, this feels off" should be the first thought on their mind if it functions in ways they don't expect, and they should treat it with caution as a result. All this is telling me is that Arrec Bardrin is not a man with an ounce of forethought or rational thinking given his primary thought appears to have been "The cheap-ass unlicensed workers I hired to replace the union walk-offs say its all fine".

EDIT: @Jaded Optimist Considering he had brought in a bunch of cheap-ass unqualified crewmen after everyone had walked off... what should have happened and what almost certainly happened are too entirely different things. This isn't the first firearms-related mishap they've had after all, just the worst and most recent.

 

[Broseph Stalin]

Yes, yes, everyone else is at fault, not Alec. Seems legit.

Well, he is a Producer on the film. Therefore, part of production. He didn't kill her in a fit of anger, but he's still potentially guilty of fostering the unsafe working conditions (ACTUAL unsafe working conditions, not that COVID bullshit) that led to the incident.

 

[Dammit Mandrake!]

doesn't that just prove that you don't need that "extensive firearm collection" since you never use it ever?

Nah man, I still kill plenty of other non-human things with my extensive firearm collection.

 

[Jet Fuel Johnny]

What are you talking about? Those guns are crazy reliable. You mention having a hair trigger on your US army colt, and then later how a replica would make a world of difference, but you said your Colt was a replica...so which is it?
The hair trigger thing would be an issue if the sear spring was worn, but the armourer should have noticed that.

It was a replica. An older one that was a little worn. It had a hair trigger on it, one of the reasons I rarely took it to the range and largely left it in the shadowbox. I just always considered it pretty finicky and touchy.

You are right, the armorer should have recognized the trigger mechanism was worn.

 

[Tour of Italy]

i literally love this comment so much, not because there's a single grain of truth in it, but because people will truly conspiricize anything. your incredible imagination and lack of human empathy is an inspiration to us all, truly.

if a rich person wanted to engineer a situation to kill someone, they'd be able to do it without any of us ever knowing.

I literally love how you're fucking moron who can't understand a joke when it's directly in front of your idiot face.

I mean holy shit. Not to say there aren't weirdos out there, but it's fucking sad if you need to assume everyone is a brain-dead conspiracy theorist in order to feel better about yourself.

 

[Reporterward]

More coverage from the LA Times. Quoting the “New” bits.

'Rust' crew describes on-set gun safety issues and misfires days before fatal shooting

At least one of the camera operators complained last weekend to production managers about gun safety on the set.

www.latimes.com

“Safety protocols standard in the industry, including gun inspections, were not strictly followed on the “Rust” set near Santa Fe, the sources said. They said at least one of the camera operators complained last weekend to a production manager about gun safety on the set.

Three crew members who were present at the Bonanza Creek Ranch set on Saturday
said they were particularly concerned about two accidental prop gun discharges.

Baldwin’s stunt double accidentally fired two rounds Saturday after being told that the gun was “cold” — lingo for a weapon that doesn’t have any ammunition, including blanks, two crew members who witnessed the episode told the Los Angeles Times.

“There should have been an investigation into what happened,” said the crew member. “There were no safety meetings. There was no assurance that it wouldn’t happen again. All they wanted to do was rush, rush, rush.”

A colleague was so alarmed by the prop gun misfires he sent a text message to the unit production manager. “We’ve now had 3 accidental discharges. This is super unsafe,” according to a copy of the message reviewed by The Times.

“The safety of our cast and crew is the top priority of Rust Productions and everyone associated with the company, " Rust Movie Productions 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. We will continue to cooperate with the Santa Fe authorities in their investigation and offer mental health services to the cast and crew during this tragic time.”

The tragedy occurred Thursday afternoon during filming of a gunfight that began in a church that is part of the old Western town at the ranch. Baldwin’s character was supposed to back out of the church, according to production notes obtained by The Times. It was the 12th day of a 21-day shoot.

Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was huddled around a monitor lining up her next camera shot when she was accidentally killed by Baldwin.

The actor was preparing to film a scene in which he pulls a gun out of a holster, according to a source close to the production. Crew members had already shouted “cold gun” on the New Mexico set. The filmmaking team was lining up its camera angles and had yet to retreat to the video village, an on-set area where the crew gathers to watch filming from a distance via a monitor.

Instead, the B-camera operator was on a dolly with a monitor, checking out the potential shots. Hutchins was also looking at the monitor from over the operator’s shoulder, as was the movie’s director, Joel Souza, who was crouching just behind her.

Baldwin removed the gun from its holster once without incident, but the second time he repeated the action, ammunition flew toward the trio around the monitor. The projectile whizzed by the camera operator but penetrated Hutchins near her shoulder, then continued through to Souza. Hutchins immediately fell to the ground as crew members applied pressure to her wound in an attempt to stop the bleeding.

Late Friday, the Associated Press reported that Baldwin was handed a loaded weapon by an assistant director who indicated it was safe to use in the moments before the actor fatally shot a cinematographer, according to court records. The assistant director did not know the prop gun was loaded with live rounds, according to a search warrant filed in a Santa Fe County court.
The person in charge of overseeing the gun props, known as the armorer, Hannah Gutierrez Reed, could not be reached for comment. The 24-year-old is the daughter of veteran armorer Thell Reed and had recently completed her first film as the head armorer for the movie “The Old Way,” with Clint Howard and Nicolas Cage.

Editorial: The production company seems to already be clamming and lawyering up with that bit of PR babble.

Also the 24-year old chick who was “head armorer” will be used as the fall guy.

 

[Milwaukee Macho Man]

It's cute how you can realize who started using the internet after like 2008-2010 based on how seriously they take everything, especially on shitposting forums.

 

[X Pac Heat]

The person in charge of overseeing the gun props, known as the armorer, Hannah Gutierrez Reed

This is what they get for going with diversity hires...

 

[FlappyBat]

Why is it not standard practice for an actor to confirm a weapon is unloaded when they are told it is cold? I can see maybe if it is hot and has blanks in it. But if it is supposed to have nothing in it, you aren't going to fuck it up by checking.

Supposedly Baldwin thought it was cold, with not even blanks in it. Add in a stuntman supposedly negligently discharging a blank when they thought it was cold twice and that practice alone would have stopped 3 incidents and saved a life.

You are handling a gun. You have the final responsibility for what you do with it.

 

[ForTheHoard]

"Johnny Ringo, you look like somebody just walked over your grave."

Combat action ribbon

Alternative thread theme to Big Iron.

 

[Quijibo69]

Why they should use Nerf guns for movies. Also, Fucking guns, how do they work?