Alec Baldwin news: Actor in Instagram spat as Rust to resume filming despite charges

The embattled western film Rust will continue production with Alec Baldwin as the lead star as he faces involuntary manslaughter charges over the on-set fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.

The Independent has the story:

In the aftermath of the 2021 shooting of Halyna Hutchins, Eliza Hutton – the fiancé of Brandon Lee – called for “alternatives to real guns on sets”.

Lee died in 1993 aged 28. The actor and son of the late action star Bruce Lee had been killed during the filming of The Crow after an actor fired a prop gun he believed to be loaded with blanks.

It was later discovered that a fragment of a dummy shell had been left in the gun’s barrel. Lee died in hospital following hours of surgery.

In October 2021, Hutton said: “I urge those in positions to make change to consider alternatives to real guns on sets.”

In February 2022, Halyna Hutchins’s husband said he felt “angry” seeing the actor speak about his wife’s death “so publicly”.

“I was angry to see him talk about her death so publicly in such a detailed way, and then to not accept responsibility after having just described killing her,” said Matt Hutchins on the Today show last year.

“The idea that the person holding the gun causing it to discharge is not rep is absurd to me.”

Prosecutors announced Thursday that Alec Baldwin will face two counts of involuntary manslaughter over Halyna Hutchins’s death on the movie set of Rust.

In a statement to The Independent, attorney Luke Nikas said: “This decision distorts Halyna Hutchins’ tragic death and represents a terrible miscarriage of justice.

“Mr Baldwin had no reason to believe there was a live bullet in the gun – or anywhere on the movie set. He relied on the professionals with whom he worked, who assured him the gun did not have live rounds. We will fight these charges, and we will win.”

The Independent’s Bevan Hurley has the story:

The former Good Morning Britain presenter appeared to welcome the charges brought against Alec Baldwin on Thursday.

“There was no doubt that it was an accident but Halyna Hutchins died, leaving behind a grief-stricken husband and a young child and the person holding the gun that fired a bullet and killed her was Alec Baldwin,” Piers Morgan said.

“It was him who did that, who fired a bullet into his co-worker’s body and snuffed out her life. Nobody else’s hands were anywhere near the gun.”

“Since that tragic day, Baldwin has been the epitome of Hollywood arrogance.”

Read the full story.

Alec Baldwin used his first public comment after being charged in the death of Rust cinematographer Halyna Hutchins to share the news of musician David Crosby’s death.

The actor was charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter over the fatal shooting on Thursday (19 January) by New Mexico district attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies. The 64-year-old is one of three cast and crew members facing charges over the accidental October 2021 shooting.

Thursday also marked the death of 81-year-old folk-rock legend Crosby following “a long illness”, his widow said.

Hours after his charges were announced, Baldwin tweeted about Crosby’s death rather than his own situation.

The actor first shared a link to a news article about Crosby’s death, followed by a link to an interview he did with Crosby in 2018 for his podcast, Here’s The Thing with Alec Baldwin.

The podcast series, in which Baldwin interviews public figures, began in 2011 and is ongoing. The most recent episode was published on 12 December, featuring an interview with US political staffer Huma Abedin.

Film production and firearms experts say movie sets probably changed permanently when cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was shot and killed on the remote New Mexico set of the Western “Rust” 14 months ago.

The incident led to the announcement from prosecutors Thursday that Alec Baldwin and the film’s weapons supervisor will be charged with involuntary manslaughter later this month.

“The gun safety experience on set has become more vocal, it’s a lot louder,” Joey Dillon, an armourer who has overseen the use of firearms on television shows including “Westworld” and movies including “The Ballad of Buster Scruggs,” told The Associated Press. “I make it a lot louder myself.”

Mr Baldwin was pointing the gun with a live round inside that killed Hutchins as they set up a shot for an upcoming scene.

Alec Baldwin will be prosecuted over the 2021 Rust movie shooting which resulted in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.

Both Baldwin and the film’s armourer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed will be charged with involuntary manslaughter over the death of Ms Hutchins on the film’s Santa Fe set.

In a statement, District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies said: “After a thorough review of the evidence and the laws of the state of New Mexico, I have determined that there is sufficient evidence to file criminal charges against Alec Baldwin and other members of the Rust film crew.

“On my watch, no one is above the law, and everyone deserves justice.”

It comes less than three months after the District Attorney’s office received the final report from the police into the incident which led to the death of Ms Hutchins after a prop gun held by Baldwin was discharged.

Witnesses have revealed Halyna Hutchins’s last words in the moments after she was shot by Alec Baldwin on the set of his movie Rust.

Ms Hutchins, director of photography for the Western film, died on 21 October 2021 after Mr Baldwin discharged a firearm while practising a gun-drawing technique on the set in New Mexico.

Seconds after she was struck, Ms Hutchins cried out to a boom operator: “That was no good. That was no good at all,” according to a Los Angeles Times report based on interviews with 14 crew members.

The Independent’s Megan Sheets has the story:

As the news breaks that Alec Baldwin has been charged with involuntary manslaughter over the fatal shooting of Halyna Hutchins, family and friends of the late cinematographer will be remembering her life and career.

Baldwin was starring in a western film called Rust in Santa Fe, New Mexico, when a prop firearm he was holding discharged, killing Halyna Hutchins, the director of photography, and injuring the director Joul Souza, police said. Hutchins was 42 years old.

The Independent’s Ellie Muir explains the late cinematographer’s projects: