Alec Baldwin movie halted after fatal shooting

Production of the movie Alec Baldwin was filming when he fatally shot a cinematographer Halyna Hutchins last week has been officially suspended.

But producers of Rust described the move as “a pause rather than an end.”

In an email to crew members, the movie’s production team confirmed that work on the Western had been suspended at least until the investigation into the shooting incident was complete.

“Although our hearts are broken, and it is hard to see beyond the horizon, this is, at the moment, a pause rather than an end,” the email read.

It comes as new details emerge of the moments before the shooting. Court records show Baldwin was explaining how he was going to draw the revolver from his holster and where his arm would be positioned.

He had been that the gun was safe to use in rehearsing a scene in which he was supposed to pull out the weapon while sitting in a church pew and point it at the camera, the records said.

Cameraman Reid Russell told a detective that he was unsure whether the weapon was checked before it was handed to Baldwin, and he did not know why the gun was fired.

The camera was not rolling when the gun went off and killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, Russell told authorities, according a search warrant affidavit released on Sunday (local time)

Authorities said on Friday that the assistant director, Dave Halls, had handed the weapon to Baldwin and announced “cold gun,” indicating it was safe.

Baldwin safe with guns

When asked about how Baldwin treated firearms on the set, Russell said the actor was safe with guns, citing a previous instance when Baldwin made sure a child actor was not near him when a gun was being discharged.

The affidavit released on Sunday also included statements by director Joel Souza, who was standing behind Hutchins and was wounded.

It detailed the moments before the shooting and showed that there was turmoil on the set the day of the shooting.

Several members of the camera crew walked off the production in a dispute about payment and lodging, Russell said, and he was left with a lot of work to do.

Only one camera was available to shoot, and it had to be moved because the light had shifted and there was a shadow.

Souza said he was focused on how the scene would appear on camera. He said he recalled hearing the phrase “cold gun” before the shooting, the affidavit said.

He said the scene did not call for the use of live rounds. After a lunch break, Souza said he was not sure if the firearm had been checked again. Souza was looking over Hutchins’ shoulder when he heard the gunshot, according to the affidavit.

Baldwin’s wife speaks on shooting

Hilaria Baldwin has broken her silence on her husband’s fatal on-set shooting of Hutchins, saying her “heart is with Halyna, her husband, her son … and my Alec.”

“It’s said, ‘there are no words because it’s impossible to express shock and heartache of such a tragic accident,” she wrote in a post on Instagram on Tuesday.

“Heartbreak. Loss. Support.”

Meanwhile, Donald Trump Jr has drawn ire for selling T-shirts mocking the Alec Baldwin movie set death.

A T-shirt that reads “Guns Don’t Kill People, Alec Baldwin Kills People” is selling for $US27.99 ($A37.35) on a merchandise site linked to the former US president’s namesake son.

The 43-year-old scion is a vocal gun advocate who frequently poses with firearms and posts photos of animals he’s killed.

Other right-wing pundits also teed up on Baldwin after Hutchins’ death. Commentator Candace Owens accused Baldwin of the “murder” of “innocent people”, which she later corrected.

Republican lawmaker Lauren Boebert and Republican Senate candidate JD Vance mocked Baldwin, with the latter asking that the former president be reinstated on Twitter so he could address his former tormentor.

– with AAP

The post Alec Baldwin movie halted after fatal shooting appeared first on The New Daily.