Tag: Rust

By AFP

LOS ANGELES: American actor Alec Baldwin has filed a lawsuit against four people involved in the Western film “Rust,” saying they were negligent in providing him with a gun that discharged, killing the movie’s cinematographer.

The death on October 21, 2021 of Halyna Hutchins sent shock waves through Hollywood and gave rise to a series of civil suits.

The 64-year-old Baldwin is suing the film’s armourer and props assistant, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed; assistant director David Halls; props master Sarah Zachry; and Seth Kenney, who supplied guns and ammunition to the film set, according to a filing Friday in a Los Angeles court.

Baldwin’s complaint follows a suit filed against him and others on the set last year by script supervisor Mamie Mitchell over their alleged role in the shooting that caused her great emotional distress.

In his suit, Baldwin accuses Gutierrez-Reed of failing to verify that a Colt revolver he was using in rehearsal was safe. The suit also states that Halls failed to check the weapon before he declared it safe and handed it to Baldwin, and that Zachry failed to ensure that weapons used on the New Mexico set were safe.

All those named in the suit have denied any culpability.

The gun Baldwin was holding during rehearsal — meant to be loaded only with blanks — instead discharged a live round, killing the 42-year-old Hutchins and wounding director Joel Souza.

Baldwin last month reached a civil settlement with Hutchins’ family, details of which have not been disclosed. A judge has not yet approved the settlement.

ALSO READ | Alec Baldwin reaches settlement with shooting victim’s family

Baldwin, who was a producer as well as the star of “Rust,” has previously said he did not pull the trigger, though an FBI report determined the gun could not have gone off otherwise.

Production on the movie will resume in January, filmmakers have said, with Hutchins’ husband Matthew Hutchins taking on the role of executive producer.

“I have no interest in engaging in recriminations or attribution of blame,” Hutchins said in an earlier statement. “All of us believe Halyna’s death was a terrible accident.”

Investigators in New Mexico have filed no criminal charges, but have not ruled them out.

In August, Baldwin said he did not believe he would be charged.

While there has never been any doubt that the gun was in Baldwin’s hands when it went off, it remains unclear how it came to be loaded with a live round.

Gutierrez-Reed has sued the film’s ammunition supplier, accusing him of leaving real bullets among the dummy cartridges.

The incident led to calls in Hollywood for guns to be permanently banned from sets.

LOS ANGELES: American actor Alec Baldwin has filed a lawsuit against four people involved in the Western film “Rust,” saying they were negligent in providing him with a gun that discharged, killing the movie’s cinematographer.

The death on October 21, 2021 of Halyna Hutchins sent shock waves through Hollywood and gave rise to a series of civil suits.

The 64-year-old Baldwin is suing the film’s armourer and props assistant, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed; assistant director David Halls; props master Sarah Zachry; and Seth Kenney, who supplied guns and ammunition to the film set, according to a filing Friday in a Los Angeles court.

Baldwin’s complaint follows a suit filed against him and others on the set last year by script supervisor Mamie Mitchell over their alleged role in the shooting that caused her great emotional distress.

In his suit, Baldwin accuses Gutierrez-Reed of failing to verify that a Colt revolver he was using in rehearsal was safe. The suit also states that Halls failed to check the weapon before he declared it safe and handed it to Baldwin, and that Zachry failed to ensure that weapons used on the New Mexico set were safe.

All those named in the suit have denied any culpability.

The gun Baldwin was holding during rehearsal — meant to be loaded only with blanks — instead discharged a live round, killing the 42-year-old Hutchins and wounding director Joel Souza.

Baldwin last month reached a civil settlement with Hutchins’ family, details of which have not been disclosed. A judge has not yet approved the settlement.

ALSO READ | Alec Baldwin reaches settlement with shooting victim’s family

Baldwin, who was a producer as well as the star of “Rust,” has previously said he did not pull the trigger, though an FBI report determined the gun could not have gone off otherwise.

Production on the movie will resume in January, filmmakers have said, with Hutchins’ husband Matthew Hutchins taking on the role of executive producer.

“I have no interest in engaging in recriminations or attribution of blame,” Hutchins said in an earlier statement. “All of us believe Halyna’s death was a terrible accident.”

Investigators in New Mexico have filed no criminal charges, but have not ruled them out.

In August, Baldwin said he did not believe he would be charged.

While there has never been any doubt that the gun was in Baldwin’s hands when it went off, it remains unclear how it came to be loaded with a live round.

Gutierrez-Reed has sued the film’s ammunition supplier, accusing him of leaving real bullets among the dummy cartridges.

The incident led to calls in Hollywood for guns to be permanently banned from sets.

By IANS

LOS ANGELES: Hollywood star Alec Baldwin believes he has been cleared following an investigation into the accidental shooting on the set of ‘Rust’.According to aceshowbiz.com, after New Mexico’s Occupational Health and Safety Bureau released the findings of their six-month investigation, the actor responded by saying that the report “exonerates” him.”We are grateful to the New Mexico Occupational Health and Safety Bureau for investigating this matter,” a lawyer for Alec said in a statement released via the actor’s Instagram account.”We appreciate that the report exonerates Mr. Baldwin by making clear that he believed the gun held only dummy rounds.””Additionally, the report recognizes that Mr. Baldwin’s authority on the production was limited to approving script changes and creative casting,” the lawyer stressed.”Mr. Baldwin had no authority over the matters that were the subject of the Bureau’s findings of violations, and we are pleased that the New Mexico officials have clarified these critical issues. We are confident that the individuals identified in the report will be held accountable for this tragedy.”On Wednesday, OHSB released a report on their investigation and found that the “Rust” producers “willfully violated” industry safety protocols. They fined the company $137,000, the maximum amount possible, for the safety violations.”The report concludes that Rust Movie Productions, LLC management knew that firearm safety procedures were not being followed on set and demonstrated plain indifference to employee safety by failing to review work practices and take corrective action,” according to the bureau’s statement.In particular, the report pointed out that armourer Hannah Gutierrez Reed was not given the chance to perform her job. Hannah was not in the church on the Old West set when the gun was handed to Baldwin and then went off.”Rust did not provide staff responsible for ensuring firearms safety with sufficient time to inspect ammunition received to ensure that no live rounds were present,” the report said.Hannah’s lawyer said the incident could have been prevented.”Had anyone from production called Hannah in back into the church before the scene to consult with her, this tragedy would have been prevented,” her lawyer Jason Bowles told USA Today in a statement.Additionally, the probe found that ‘Rust’ management ignored concerns raised by crew members about firearm and pyrotechnics misfires on set prior to the shooting incident.Weapons specialists were not allowed to make decisions about additional safety training, OSHB pointed out.Baldwin, seven producers and other ‘Rust’ crew members, including Hannah, still face a wrongful death lawsuit from Halyna Hutchins’ family, alleging that reckless behaviour and cost-cutting led to the cinematographer’s death.

By ANI

WASHINGTON: A lawyer for late cinematographer Halyna Hutchins’ husband called actor Alec Baldwin’s arbitration demand an attempt to avoid “liability and accountability” for his “reckless actions” that led to the death of Hutchins.

Brian Panish of Panish, Shea, Boyle and Ravipudi Law, who represents Hutchins’ husband Matthew, told Fox News the only action that ended the production of ‘Rust’ was Halyna Hutchins’ death at the hands of Baldwin.

“Alec Baldwin once again is trying to avoid liability and accountability for his reckless actions before and on October 21 that resulted in the death of Halyna Hutchins, as demonstrated by today’s arbitration demand for indemnification from the Rust production company,” Panish said in a statement.

For the unversed, the arbitration demand, filed on Friday by Baldwin’s lawyers, included insight into the 63-year-old actor’s role as a producer of ‘Rust’.

ALSO READ | Would go to any lengths to undo what happened to Halyna Hutchins, says Alec Baldwin

Baldwin’s lawyer Luke Nikas stated, “This is a rare instance when the system broke down, and someone should be held legally culpable for the tragic consequences. That person is not Alec Baldwin.”

In the arbitration seeking move against his fellow producers on the film, Baldwin wants to invoke a provision in his contract that could indemnify him in all current and future lawsuits.

The actor claimed he was in charge of creative aspects but did not deal with hiring and budgets.

Baldwin’s arbitration demand claimed the actor and his company had signed a clause in his contract for ‘Rust’ that he bears no financial responsibility for legal fees or claims from Hutchins’ death, according to Fox News.

The filing also included personal text messages shared between Baldwin and Matthew after the death of Halyna.

“Baldwin’s disclosure of personal texts with Matt Hutchins is irrelevant to his demand for arbitration and fails to demonstrate anything other than Hutchins’ dignity in his engagement with Baldwin,” Panish told Fox News.

“It is shameful that Baldwin claims Hutchins’ actions in filing a wrongful death lawsuit derailed the completion of ‘Rust.’ The only action that ended the film’s production was Baldwin’s killing of Halyna Hutchins,” he added.

ALSO READ | Hollywood film set shooting: ‘Rust’ director Joel Souza breaks silence on demise of Halyna Hutchins

The wrongful death lawsuit, filed on February 15 on behalf of Matthew and the couple’s son in New Mexico, names as defendants Alec Baldwin and others who “are responsible for the safety on the set” and “reckless behaviour and cost-cutting” that led to the death of the cinematographer.

The Santa Fe County Sheriff’s office, which is conducting the investigation into Hutchins’ death, made no comment at the time the lawsuit was filed.

On October 21, 2021, Hutchins was killed by a live bullet in a prop gun discharged by Baldwin on the set of ‘Rust’ at the Bonanza Creek Ranch near Sante Fe, New Mexico. “I didn’t pull the trigger,” Baldwin told during an interview on December 2.

By ANI

WASHINGTON: Actor Alec Baldwin recently shared a lengthy letter signed by some members from the ‘Rust’ cast and crew. In the letter, the members disputed claims of the film set being ‘unprofessional’ and ‘chaotic’.

Baldwin shared the two-part open letter co-signed by nearly 25 crew members from ‘Rust’, defending the production after reports of concerning conditions and employee walk-offs prior to the fatal on-set shooting, which killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and left director Joel Souza injured.

The 63-year-old actor took to Instagram on Thursday to share the letter, which began by clarifying that it had “not been sanctioned or influenced in any way by the producers” to be drafted. The crew members said in the letter that they wanted to “express a more accurate account” of their “workplace tragedy.”

In the letter, Hutchins is remembered by her colleagues, who called her “the heart of our production.”

They wrote, “Losing her hurt every single one of us. We are hurting from the loss of our togetherness, our spirit, and the loss of our labour. We are hurting for our friends that have been targeted by the public as they themselves grieve.”

The crew members acknowledged that the ‘Rust’ production had “areas that were more challenging” and imperfect, though they maintained it was a “professional” set with “areas of brilliance.”

“The descriptions of “Rust” as a chaotic, dangerous, and exploitative workplace are false and distract from what matters the most: the memory of Halyna Hutchins and the need to find modern alternatives to outdated industry firearm and safety practices,” read the letter. Days after the tragedy, a crew member who worked on the film told People magazine that there were “red flags” on set leading up to the incident and that the filming environment felt unsafe at times.

Reports also mentioned people on set staged a walkout after some members of the camera crew wrote resignation letters the night before the incident.

In the new letter, these crew members said, “While it is true that a few crew members quit prior to the accident, the vast majority of us remained, never feeling the need to protest or quit. We were enjoying our workplace. Those disgruntled few do not represent the views of all of us.”

The letter also stated that “working morale on set was high,” and that “from the director down to the production assistants, all departments worked well together, collaborating and helping each other achieve shared artistic goals.”

“We are supporting each other and cooperating with investigators,” the crew members said at the end of the open letter.

“We kindly request that your speculation and generalizations about us and our colleagues be sympathetic until all investigation is concluded. We are grateful to our many friends and family that have reached out to us privately to offer compassion and support,” the letter concluded.

While filming the movie at the Bonanza Creek Ranch in Santa Fe, New Mexico, on October 21, Baldwin held the firearm that discharged and fatally wounded Hutchins. She was 42 when she breathed her last.

There is an ongoing investigation into how live rounds came to be inside the revolver, reported People magazine.

The letter comes one week after Baldwin’s emotional ABC News interview aired in which the veteran star told George Stephanopoulos that he has been “struggling physically” in the wake of the shooting but that he doesn’t feel guilt for what happened.

On November 17, Baldwin and ‘Rust’ producers were named in a lawsuit filed by script supervisor Mamie Mitchell, who was allegedly standing in the line of fire when the gun went off. An investigation into the matter is ongoing.