Alec Baldwin Shot The Prop Gun That Killed A Crew Member On His Upcoming Film, Officials Said

Authorities said they were still investigating how the incident occurred as the film's director is also being treated for injuries.

Alec Baldwin "discharged" the prop gun that killed a cinematographer on the set of a movie he was filming in New Mexico, authorities said Thursday night.

Halyna Hutchins, the 42-year-old director of photography for the movie Rust, was pronounced dead from the injury at the University of New Mexico Hospital, where she had been flown, the Santa Fe sheriff's office said.

The film's director, Joel Souza, was also injured, the sheriff's office added. Deadline reported that Souza was released from the hospital on Friday morning.

"No charges have been filed in regard to this incident. Witnesses continue to be interviewed by detectives," the sheriff's office said.

It's unclear how the incident occurred, but the sheriff's office said deputies were dispatched at around 1:50 p.m. to the Bonanza Creek Ranch movie set regarding a report of someone being shot on set.

"According to investigators it appears that the scene being filmed involved the use of a prop firearm when it was discharged. Detectives are investigating how and what type of projectile was discharged," the statement added.

Baldwin is listed as a coproducer on the film, playing infamous Old West outlaw Harland Rust.

Days before she died, Hutchins posted a photo on social media of the Rust crew on set, writing that they stood in solidarity with the entertainment union IATSE, which has been fighting for more humane working conditions. Responding to her death, people posted condolences in replies to the post.

A writer and photographer for the Santa Fe New Mexican reported witnessing Baldwin in tears in a parking lot after the incident.

Michael Chambliss, a representative for the IATSE guild, said it was "a tragic and needless accident."

In a statement from the guild's national president and executive director, John Lindley and Rebecca Rhine, respectively, said details regarding Hutchins' death "are unclear at this moment, but we are working to learn more, and we support a full investigation into this tragic event."

According to her biography, Hutchins graduated from the AFI Conservatory in 2015 and was selected as one of American Cinematographer’s Rising Stars of 2019, as well as a cinematographer for the 21st Century Fox DP Lab in 2018.

Topics in this article

Skip to footer