Alec Baldwin and other film producers on ‘Rust’ are facing multiple lawsuits after the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on set, in Santa Fe County, last month, as reported by i News.
The 63-year-old actor was sued for negligence by the head electrician, Serge Svetnoy, as well as script supervisor, Mamie Mitchell who were both present at the accident. The parties have claimed they have suffered emotional distress following the shooting. The Daily Mail reported, Mitchell was the first to call the emergency services and Svetnoy allegedly held Hutchins, his close friend, as she died.
According to a court document, Baldwin was handed the pistol by assistant director Dave Halls, who called out “cold gun” – meaning that it was safe. Halls later admitted that he hadn’t properly checked all the rounds.
Baldwin, who was the lead actor as well as a producer on ‘Rust’, then rehearsed a scene where he drew the gun from his holster and pointed it towards the camera. A live round was fired which struck Hutchins, 42, in the chest and wounded director Joel Souza.
It is alleged that Baldwin was not required to pull the trigger for the scene. He said, in a video message, that the shooting was a “one in a trillion event” and that they “were a very well-oiled crew”.
Armourer, Hannah Guiterrez-Reed, 24, and Halls are among others on set who are facing lawsuits. There were allegedly many other safety failures on set, including keeping live ammunition with dummy rounds, leaving guns and ammo unattended and allowing the weapons to be attended by crew-members other than the armourer and prop master.
The production’s weapons and some 500 rounds of ammunition were seized by police when they arrived on the scene. Investigations into the shooting are ongoing and no criminal charges have been announced yet, CNN reports.
There were also claims as reported by ABC News that there had been previous safety issues, including two accidental weapon discharges and one accidental [sound effects] explosive that had gone off. These allegations were made by Lane Luper, formerly first camera assistant on the film before he joined half a dozen other members who walked off set to protest poor working conditions. ‘Rust’ producers deny these claims.
Since the tragic incident, the BBC has reported growing calls for a ban on live firearms on film sets, with a petition harnessing over 115,000 signatures. Dave Cortese, a California State Senator, has also proposed a bill that would ban live ammunition and firearms from movie sets in California.
This isn’t the first time that fatal shootings have taken place on film sets. In 1993, actor Brandon Lee was shot whilst filming ‘The Crow’. Previous negligent use of a prop gun had resulted in a bullet being lodged in the chamber. During a scene that required Lee to be shot at, a blank round propelled the bullet forward with almost the same force as live ammunition. He was rushed to surgery but died because of his injuries.
In 1984, on the set of TV series ‘Cover Up’, Jon-Erik Hexum was also killed in a gun accident. The actor picked up one of the prop guns and aimed it at his head as a joke, pulling the trigger. Though it had been loaded with a blank round, it still contained gunpowder and Hexum was later declared braindead.
Even one death from prop guns is too many, and the fact that it has happened multiple times suggests that action needs to be taken to protect actors and crew members. There are no definitive set of regulations on the use of firearms across the film industry, and right now, it’s up to them to create and follow their own rules.
The Industry-Wide Labor-Management Safety Committee has a list of guidelines for handling prop guns and firearms. This includes never pointing a gun at anyone, always acting as if the gun is loaded, providing firearms safety-meetings, and utilising protective shields and hearing protection. When there is no law to follow these regulations, and no regulatory body to enforce them, how useful can they really be in practice?
It is understandable that some industry members may be against the total banning of guns on set, feeling that it enhances the story and makes the action more realistic. Rather than simulating a gunshot afterwards with editing software, the actors can see the muzzle flash, hear the round firing, and feel the recoil from the shot.
Perhaps an organisation needs to be set up to enforce safety requirements and ensure that firearms, should they not be banned, are handled properly. They could impose fines or filming bans if the production is found to be unsafe, thus encouraging sets to follow vital safety rules.
Actors and staff on film sets are entitled to protection and should feel safe at work. There are safety procedures in place for a reason, and more needs to be done to ensure that they’re being followed, to stop any more lives from being lost so needlessly.
