Alec Balwin is a co-producer of the film Rust, which was being filmed in New Mexico
LOS ANGELES, Oct 22 (NNN-AGENCIES) — A woman has died and a man has been injured after actor Alec Baldwin fired a prop gun on a New Mexico film set.
Police in the US state said Baldwin discharged the weapon during filming for the 19th Century western Rust.
The woman was taken to hospital but died of her injuries. The man, the film’s director, was receiving emergency care.
A spokesperson for Baldwin said the incident involved the misfiring of a prop gun with blanks.
The woman has been named as Halyna Hutchins, 42, who was working as director of photography. The man being treated is Joel Souza, 48, the film’s director.
Police are still investigating the incident at Bonanza Creek Ranch, a popular filming location, and no charges have been filed.
In a statement, a Santa Fe sheriff spokesman said Baldwin had spoken with detectives.
“He came in voluntarily and he left the building after he finished his interviews,” the spokesperson said.
According to her personal website, Hutchins was from Ukraine and grew up on a Soviet military base in the Arctic Circle. She studied journalism in Kyiv, and film in Los Angeles, and was named a “rising star” by the American Cinematographer magazine in 2019.
In a statement, the International Cinematographer’s Guild said Hutchins’ death was “devastating news” and “a terrible loss”.
Police said sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to Bonanza Creek Ranch at around 13:50 local time after receiving an emergency call about a shooting on set.
Baldwin is a co-producer of the film and plays its namesake, an outlaw whose 13-year-old grandson is convicted of an accidental murder. — NNN-AGENCIES