Actor Alec Baldwin discharged a prop gun Thursday that killed a cinematographer and injured the director on the set of his new film, Rust.
CNN reports Halyna Hutchins, the 42-year-old director of photography on the film, was airlifted Thursday afternoon to University of New Mexico Hospital, where she was pronounced dead. Joel Souza, the 48-year-old director of the movie, was injured in the shooting, but has been released from the hospital.
The tragedy brought back memories of the death of Brandon Lee, the son of Bruce Lee, who died while filming The Crow in 1993 after he was shot with a prop gun. The late actor’s sister, Shannon Lee, took to Twitter on Friday to speak out about the incident.
“Our hearts go out to the family of Halyna Hutchins and to Joel Souza and all involved in the incident on ‘Rust.’ No one should ever be killed by a gun on a film set. Period,” she wrote.
“A live single round was accidentally fired on set by the principal actor, hitting both the Director of Photography, Local 600 member Halyna Hutchins, and Director Joel Souza,” the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) Local 44 said in an email to its members.
Baldwin also took to Twitter on Friday to make his first public statement following the incident.
“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 wrote. “I’m fully cooperating with the police investigation to address how this tragedy occurred and 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.”
Production on Rust is set to halt for an undetermined amount of time, Deadline confirmed. “The entire cast and crew has been absolutely devastated by today’s tragedy, and we send our deepest condolences to Halyna’s family and loved ones,” said a Rust Movie Productions LLC spokesperson. “We have halted production on the film for an undetermined period of time and are fully cooperating with the Santa Fe Police Department’s investigation.”
