“This is a one in trillion episode.”
Alec Baldwin has given his first public interview since the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.
On Thursday, 21 October, Baldwin discharged a firearm on the set of independent film Rust in an accident that killed Hutchins and injured director Joel Souza.
In the 10 days since, numerous reports have emerged, ranging from on-set health and safety concerns to detailed accounts of the incident to speculation over the potential for criminal charges to move forward.
Having previously shared a brief, sorrowful statement via Twitter, Baldwin has now spoken at length, on-camera.
In a video shared by TMZ, the actor began by noting that he’s “not allowed to make any comment because it’s an ongoing investigation” before underlining that he has been ordered by authorities to not answer any questions in relation to the investigation.
“A woman died,” he noted. “She was my friend. She was my friend. The day I arrived in Santa Fe to start shooting, I took her to dinner with Joel [Souza], the director.
“We were a very, very well-oiled crew shooting a film together and then this horrible event happened.”
Baldwin once again stressed that he has been told “multiple times” not to make any comment about the investigation before being asked if he has met with the family of Hutchins.
“Yes, I met with her husband Matthew and her son,” he said.
“The guy is overwhelmed with grief. There are incidental accidents on film sets from time to time, but nothing like this. This is a one in trillion episode. It’s a one in a trillion event.
“So, he is in shock. He has a nine-year-old son. We are in constant contact with him because we are very worried about his family and his kid and, as I said, we are eagerly awaiting for the sheriff’s department to tell us what their investigation has yielded.”
Baldwin added that an ongoing effort to limit the use of firearms on film sets is something he is “extremely interested” in and that “new measures” need to be introduced.
Asked if production will restart on Rust, Baldwin stated:
“No, I doubt it.”
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