Alec Baldwin believes strongly in gun safety. He wants stricter controls on who can own guns.
The actor believes that Americans should not be allowed to own firearms without going through a rigorous process to ensure they are healthy enough to do so.
This is something I know because I was with him during a CNN interview a few years back. He said that he supported people owning guns, but that it should be the most difficult process for them to obtain the right to own a gun. Our society licenses many things. It is not possible to walk into a shop and get all the drugs that you need. You can be in severe pain but you still have go to the hospital. We license cars. We license many things. I believe we should license guns beyond what we currently do. It could take you several weeks to have a gun licensed.
Baldwin’s knuckles were battered and bruised from an accident while making a movie.
He explained that he had injured himself on the set. I fell off a ladder and broke my hand. You’re constantly in danger when you’re on a soundstage, especially if your job is moving sets and shooting like we do. Every five minutes you can smash your head on something. When you trip on something or hit anything, you know you’re really on a movie set.
These were the thoughts that came to my mind when I heard the shocking news that Baldwin had accidentally killed a young female filmmaker and also wounded a director while filming Rust, his new movie in New Mexico.
It seemed impossible that an actor with Alec Baldwin’s fame and stature would fire a gun at coworkers. It was soon clear that Baldwin had no idea that the gun contained real ammunition. Pictured: Baldwin at the Santa Fe Sheriff’s Office following the shooting
However, the more information we have about this horrible incident, the more questions that are raised about Baldwin’s own responsibility for the chaotically dangerous, amateurish working culture on the Rust set that led to its shooting. These questions are extremely serious. These questions are extremely serious for the family of the woman who was killed, Halyna Houtchins (left), and they deserve and must be answered. I’m certain they will pursue them through civil and criminal lawsuits as well as courtrooms.
From affidavits filed by police and search warrants executed at Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office we know that Baldwin was setting up a shot where he had to cross-draw a revolver. This means that he took the revolver from the holster to the draw hand and pointed it at the camera. Pictured: Rust at Bonanza Creek Ranch cast and crew
It was discovered that there were at most two or three other accidental gun discharges on set on October 16, one week before the fatal shooting. A supervisor was notified about the safety practices at the set after these incidents. Pictured: Baldwin was practicing at the ranch’s church when the gun went off.
It seemed impossible that a star of his stature and experience could fire a loaded gun at coworkers, especially considering his advocacy for gun safety awareness and gun safety.
But it became obvious that Baldwin didn’t realize the gun contained real ammunition.
As a result, many people on social media rushed immediately to blame him.
I tweeted: “If Alec Baldwin was given a prop gun with live ammunition, then the focus should not be on the man who innocently fired it. But the person who gave it to him.
But, as we learn more about this terrible incident, more questions are being raised about Baldwin’s culpability for the chaotically dangerous, amateurish working culture that led to the shooting.
These questions are extremely serious.
Halyna Hutchins’ family, the victim, deserves and must receive answers. I am certain they will pursue them through civil and criminal lawsuits.
From affidavits filed by police and search warrants executed at Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office we know that Baldwin and his crew were setting up a shot requiring him to “cross-draw” a revolver. This means that he took the revolver from the opposite hand of the body to the drawhand and pointed it at the camera.
An assistant director on the set, David Halls, had taken the gun off a cart — where it had been placed by the film’s armorer, or weapons handler — and handed it to Baldwin with the words ‘cold gun!’ This is movie set language to confirm that the gun was safe and unloaded.
Baldwin was apparently showing how he would do the cross-draw move, when the gun went off.
Director Joel Souza stated that he heard “what sounded like an whip and then a loudpop” and noticed Hutchins, whom he was behind at the time grab her stomach as she fell backwards.
She was flown to Albuquerque’s University of New Mexico Hospital, where she later died.
Souza sustained a shoulder injury but was released from the hospital.
So, just a terrible accident – right?
Yes, in the sense that Baldwin believed the gun was not loaded.
Serge Svetnoy (film’s chief electrician) blamed producers for Hutchins’ death in a Facebook post on Sunday. He accused them of hiring an inexperienced armer, Hannah Gutierrez Reed (pictured), and also accused them ‘negligence, unprofessionalism’ regarding the way weapons were handled. Sources who knew Gutierrez-Reed (24), said that she is known for being reckless with guns.
An assistant director on the set, David Halls (pictured), had taken the gun off a cart — where it had been placed by the film’s armorer, or weapons handler — and handed it to Baldwin with the words ‘cold gun!’ This is movie set language for confirming that the gun was safe to handle. Baldwin was apparently showing how he would do the cross-draw move, when the gun went off.
Souza stated that the camera wasn’t rolling during rehearsals in a church pew.
This doesn’t mean he should have believed that. Nor does it mean he is free from any managerial responsibility for events leading to the shooting.
It was discovered that there were at most two or three other accidental gun discharges on this set on October 16, one week before the fatal shooting.
After these incidents, a supervisor was notified to address safety practices on the set.
We also know that the incident was caused by a 911 call in which David Halls, an assistant director, gave Baldwin the gun. Halls is an industry veteran who worked with movies like ‘Fargo and ‘The Matrix Reloaded.
Halls was previously criticized for his disregard for safety protocols.
Maggie Goll is a prop maker and licensed pyrotechnician. She stated in a statement she filed an internal complaint to Hulu’s executive producers in 2019 over concerns about Halls’ behaviour on set. Halls said he ignored safety protocols regarding weapons and pyrotechnics, and tried continuing filming after the supervising pyrotechnician lost consciousness.
Hall was not aware that the gun was loaded.
That begs the obvious question: Why shout ‘cold’ if it’s not cold?
If he didn’t know if the gun was loaded, who would?
Someone must have done it.
Serge Svetnoy (the film’s chief electrical contractor) blamed Hutchins for his death in a Facebook post on Sunday. He lashed out at producers for hiring Hannah Gutierrez Reed, an inexperienced armer, and accused them of negligence and unprofessionalism for the way weapons were handled.
Hannah Gutierrez – Reed, 24, was a source who said that she had a history of recklessness with guns.
The Daily Beast was told by a source that she was careless with guns and would sometimes wave it around. “There were times when she loaded blanks and did it in a way we thought was unsafe.
GutierrezReed herself expressed doubts about the level of her experience. A month ago, Gutierrez-Reed stated that she nearly turned down her last job because she wasn’t sure if she was ready.
We have a dangerously inexperienced armer, a reckless safety-ignoring assistant Director, and gun shots going off on set.
This sounds just as concerning to me than it did to the other crew members.
One worker was so worried about weapon safety, he sent his manager a text message warning of’super unsafe’ conditions.
The Los Angeles Times saw the text sent to the unit production manager. It stated: “We’ve now had three accidental discharges. This is extremely dangerous.
Sources close to Rust told the LA Times that important safety protocols, such as regular gun inspections, weren’t strictly adhered to.
Crew member stated that there should have been an investigation into the incident. Safety meetings were not held. There was no guarantee that it wouldn’t happen again. They just wanted to rush, rush, hurry.
The chaotic environment created chaos on set. Six crew members quit just hours before the fatal shooting to protest at poor working conditions, including long workdays and delayed paychecks.
Alec Baldwin must have known about the gun discharge incidents, and crew concerns over the armorer’s inexperience and the assistant director’s record of dangerous on-set safety misconduct, because he wasn’t just a jobbing actor on the movie – he was a named Executive Producer. He should have made sure that he knew, even if he didn’t.
Director Joel Souza (right), claimed he heard “what sounded almost like a whip, then a loud pop,” and noticed Hutchins(left), who was standing behind him at the time to grab her stomach as she fell forwards. Souza was also hurt in the shooting.
The big question is: How and why did this fatal shooting occur?
While real guns are often used on movie sets, there are strict guidelines about how they are used.
All firearms should be managed only by a qualified armorer with a permit from the government.
Before filming begins, all cast members must be trained in gun safety. Guns should not be pointed directly at anyone during rehearsals or actual filming. Cameras can be used in a variety of ways to achieve the angles.
Live ammunition should never be loaded into guns that are already set.
Blanks can be used to fire guns instead of real bullets.
(Even blanks – made up of wads of papers, plastic, felt or cotton – must be handled very carefully as they can still cause serious harm or even death as happened to Jon-Erik Hexum on the set of CBS series Cover Up when he jokily aimed the fun at himself and died from the blast.)
Others in the industry were equally shocked at Baldwin’s shooting.
Jeffrey Wright, who has worked on the James Bond franchise and the upcoming movie ‘The Batman’, said: ‘I don’t recall ever being handed a weapon that was not cleared in front of me — meaning chamber open, barrel shown to me, light flashed inside the barrel to make sure that it’s cleared. That was clearly a poorly managed set.
Actor Ray Liotta agreed: ‘They always — that I know of — they check it so you can see. They give it the person you are pointing at, then they show it to their producer.
We have more questions. Why didn’t Alec Baldwin insist that the gun be shown to him? Why did he point it at his co-workers when that is strictly forbidden?
Alec Baldwin must have known about the gun discharge incidents, and crew concerns over the armorer’s inexperience and the assistant director’s record of dangerous on-set safety misconduct, because he wasn’t just a jobbing actor on the movie – he was a named Executive Producer.
He should have made sure he knew, even if he didn’t know.
He should have checked that his gun was cold before he shot at his coworkers and killed a young woman of talent.
Baldwin called the shooting “tragic” and stated that it was a tragic accident. My heart breaks for her husband, their son, Halyna, and all those who knew and loved her.
I don’t doubt that he was sincere about the shooting, and that he didn’t know that the gun he shot was loaded.
However, I am now skeptical about Alec Baldwin’s portrayal of it as a “tragic accident.”
We know that this was an accident waiting for him based on the circumstances surrounding his trigger pull.