Rust, the Alec Baldwin film that came to a halt following the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins in October 2021, is due to resume filming.
Hutchins died in October 2021 after being struck by a live bullet during rehearsals on set in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The film’s director Joel Souza was also shot and injured but survived the incident.
In January, Baldwin was charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter over the shooting of 42-year-old Hutchins. The actor pleaded not guilty, having previously claimed he was told the gun was safe and denied pulling the trigger.
On Thursday (20 April), production is set to start up filming once more at the Yellowstone Film Ranch in Montana. Baldwin will continue his involvement as an actor and co-producer, the production company confirmed.
Last month, the company finalised a settlement with New Mexico workplace safety regulars over “serious” violations, agreeing to a $100,000 (roughly £80,000) fine to resolve a scathing safety review that detailed unheeded complaints and misfires on set before Hutchins was shot.
Plans to resume filming were outlined last year by Hutchins’ husband Matthew, in a proposed settlement to a wrongful death lawsuit that would make him an executive producer on a rebooted Rust.
Director Souza has previously said he’ll return to the Rust production to honor the legacy of Halyna Hutchins. A documentary about Hutchins’ life is being filmed simultaneously with Rust.
It comes as prosecutors in Santa Fe are pressing forward with involuntary manslaughter charges against actor Baldwin and a weapons supervisor Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, both of whom have pleaded not guilty.
Baldwin was pointing a pistol at Hutchins during a rehearsal when the gun when off, killing Hutchins and wounding director Joel Souza.
Baldwin has claimed the gun went off accidentally and that he did not pull the trigger. An FBI forensic report found the weapon could not not have fired unless the trigger was pulled.
Rust safety coordinator and assistant director David Halls pleaded no contest in March to a conviction for unsafe handling of a firearm and a suspended sentence of six months of probation.
Last week, Baldwin asked a judge to dismiss a ‘misguided’ lawsuit against him by Hutchins’ parents and sister.
As shooting resumes, actors Guy Ritchie and Jake Gyllenhaal have discussed the use of prop guns in film production after the tragedy on the set of Rust.
“That whole thing has changed now, the whole game has changed,” Ritchie says. “We haven’t used a real weapon since [the Rust shooting]... which I have to tell you, it’s a tremendous relief for all of us.”
Additional reporting by Associated Press
