Alec Baldwin was filming his upcoming movie Rust when he discharged a prop gun accidentally killing a woman on set.
Production was underway in Bonanza Creek, New Mexico on Thursday afternoon when Baldwin, 63, fired off a prop gun. He accidentally shot and killed the film’s director of photography and cinematographer, Halyna Hutchins, and injured the director Joel Souza.
Baldwin was questioned by police but no charges have been made as investigations continue.
Tributes have poured in for Hutchins with Hollywood stars such as Dwayne Johnson, James Gunn and Joe Manganiello passing on their condolences.
It has been confirmed that filming on Rust has been suspended.
What is Rust about?
Rust is billed as a 19th century western following 13-year-old boy, Lucas (Brady Noon), who is left to fend for himself and his younger brother following the death of their parents in 1880’s Kansas.
The boy goes on the run with his long estranged grandfather, infamous Western outlaw Harland Rust (Baldwin), after he’s sentenced to hang for the accidental killing of a local rancher. However, their desperation to escape is heightened as Harland already has a bounty on his head.
Together, the two fugitives must outrun the legendary US Marshal Wood Helm (Jensen Ackles) and bounty-hunter Fenton ‘Preacher’ Lang (Travis Fimmel) who are hot on their tail.
Deeply buried secrets rise from the ashes and an unexpected familial bond begins to form as the mismatched duo tries to survive the merciless American Frontier.
Baldwin serves as producer while also starring in the picture.
Who is in the Rust cast?
Rust will star Baldwin in the lead but he’ll be joined by actress Frances Fisher, who is best known for her role as Ruth DeWitt Bukater, Rose’s mother, in James Cameron’s iconic blockbuster Titanic.
Jenson Ackles, best known for TV series Supernatural and horror movie My Bloody Valentine, will also star.
Australian actor Travis Fimmel, famed for starring in hit series Vikings, is also a cast member.
Various members of the cast had shared photos from the set in recent days, with Baldwin posting a photo of himself looking bloodied just hours before the incident on Thursday, but he has since deleted the image.
Fisher also shared a photo of the huge cast and crew posing in Bonanza Creek.
In September, Ackles appeared at the SNP Denver 2021 convention where he explained to the audience about how he chose his gun for the movie.
He said: ‘I’ve got a 6am call tomorrow to have a big shoot-out,’ before pretending to fire a gun.
The actor continued: ‘They had me pick my gun. They were like, “Alright, what gun would you like?” I was like, “I don’t know”, and the armourer was like, “Do you have gun experience?” I was like, “A little”, she was like, “This is how you load it. This is how you load it, check it’s safe. Do you want it hip drawn or cross drawn?” I was like “cross drawn, that sounds fun”.’
‘So she’s like, I’ll just put some blanks in there and just fire a couple of rounds towards the hill… I walk out and she’s like, “Just make sure you pull the hammer all the way back and aim at your target”, I was like alright I got it,’ he said before pretending to shoot expertly and reholstering his gun.
When is Rust set for release?
A release date for Rust had not been announced but filming has been halted following the shooting.
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