You might recall Alec Baldwin for his terribly abrasive phone call to his daughter several years ago, but he is now known for something else. It was October 21st when cinematographer Halyna Hutchins spoke her final words on the movie set of “Rust.” Apparently, she said, “That was no good at all.”
A lengthy report from the Los Angeles Times details how there were some interviews with 14 “Rust” crew members that detailed the incidents that went down before and after the shooting on that movie set. Prior to that shot that had ultimately killed Hutchins, Baldwin held the .45 caliber Colt firearm, and he said, “So, I guess I’m gonna take this out, pull it and go, ‘Bang!'”
The Times noted that the B-Cam operator had been standing with the film’s director Joel Souza and Hutchins, adding the following account:
During the scene, Baldwin’s character was supposed to fast-draw his weapon and shoot at a rival. [First assistant director Dave] Halls had not pulled the gun’s trigger during the run-throughs he performed. But when Baldwin entered the church to do a quick rehearsal, he apparently did. The bullet barely missed Russell before hitting the DP and the director. The trio was about two feet from the muzzle of the weapon.
After Hutchins had been hit and fell back into the arms of the lead electrician of the set, then she laid on the ground. After the boom operator told Hutchins, “Oh, that was no good”, she allegedly replied, “No. That was no good. That was no good at all.” All the while, blood was pouring out of her chest.
The gun actually passed through Hutchins’ body and then grazed Director Souza, and he screamed, “What the f***** was that? That burns!”
Baldwin put the gun down on the pew that was on the set, and he repeatedly said, “What the f**** just happened?”
The Times reported, “A dummy round, which contains no gunpowder and doesn’t fire, would look nearly identical to a bullet when the camera peered down the barrel of the revolver Baldwin was holding, with none of the lethal capabilities. If the rounds had been checked as they went into the gun, Halls would have seen that at least one lacked the small hole or indent that visually differentiates dummies from bullets. He would have also noticed that it didn’t make the signature rattling that proves there’s only a BB — and no gunpowder — in the dummy round.”
“Rust” A-camera first assistant Lane Luper said to the Times, “It always felt like the budget was more important than crew members. Everything was about the schedule and the budget.”
Jonas Huerta was a digital utility technician working on the set, and the night before the shooting occurred, NO LESS, he emailed unit production manager Katherine Walters, “I have to wake up early and commute to set, my job is very physically demanding and I am beyond exhausted by the time I wrap. I’ve found myself nodding off or having to take micro naps on the roadside just to get home safe.” He added, “I also feel anxious on set, I’ve seen firsthand our [assistant director] rush to get shots and he skips over important protocols. He often rushes to shoot, I’ve had more than a few occasions where I have been close to the weapons being fired with no regards to my hearing. Sometimes he rushes so quickly that props [department] hasn’t even had the chance to bring earplugs and he rolls and the actors fire anyway.”
