Alec Baldwin Breaks Silence on Firearm Accident: 'My Heart is Broken' 42-year-old Halyna Hutchins was pronounced dead after an accident on the set of the movie 'Rust.'
By Emily Rella Edited by Jessica Thomas
Opinions expressed by BIZ Experiences contributors are their own.
Update 12:26 PM: Alec Baldwin has issued a statement to Twitter regarding the tragic accident that took the life of Halyna Hutchins on the set of Rust.
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— AlecBaldwin(HABF) (@AlecBaldwin) October 22, 2021
There are no words to convey my shock and sadness regarding the tragic accident that took the life of Halyna Hutchins, a wife, mother and deeply admired colleague of ours. I'm fully cooperating with the police investigation to address how this tragedy occurred and
2- I am in touch with her husband, offering my support to him and his family. My heart is broken for her husband, their son, and all who knew and loved Halyna.
— AlecBaldwin(HABF) (@AlecBaldwin) October 22, 2021
"There are no words to convey my shock and sadness regarding the tragic accident that took the life of Halyna Hutchins, a wife, mother and deeply admired colleague of ours," Baldwin said in a two-part Tweet. "My heart is broken for her husband, their son, and all who knew and loved Halyna."
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Tragedy struck late Thursday on the set of the film Rust when an accident with a prop firearm left director of photography Halyna Hutchins dead and director Joel Souza injured.
Souza was taken to Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center, where details on his condition have not been reported. Hutchins was flown to University of New Mexico Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Rust was being filmed at Bonanza Creek Ranch in Sante Fe, New Mexico, according to the Santa Fe County Sherrif's Office.
The gun was reportedly set off by actor Alec Baldwin, who is both the film's star and producer. Baldwin provided a statement to local law enforcement and investigators willingly and has not yet made a formal statement or comment to the media or public.
Production for Rust has been "halted for the time being," per Deadline.
"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," International Cinematographers Guild president John Lindley and executive director Rebecca Rhine said in a statement to 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."
The incident happened just before 2 p.m. MST while a scene was being filmed, and it is still being treated as an "open investigation."
Hutchins, who was 42 years old, was named a "rising star" by American Cinematographer in 2019 and was a graduate of the American Film Institute. She was born in Ukraine and raised on a Soviet military base.
"She grew up on a Soviet military base where there wasn't much to do but watch movies. So she fell in love with movies at a young age, came over here, was really making a name for herself as a cinematographer of genre movies. She was known for action films and horror films. It is just a devastating loss, I think, to everybody in the cinematography community," Jim Hemphill, the journalist who profiled Hutchins for American Cinematographer, told CNN in a statement.
No arrests or charges have been made in the case.
This is a developing story.
