Just over three years ago, Alec Baldwin was involved in a tragic incident on the set of the western film “Rust” in New Mexico, where a gun he was practicing with discharged a live round, resulting in the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injuries to director Joel Souza.
The incident led to criminal cases, lawsuits, and a reevaluation of the use of real firearms in the film industry. Despite the tragedy, the film was completed in Montana with a new cinematographer and the use of only fake weapons, as the production team aimed to honor Hutchins’s final work.
The 133-minute film is set to have its world premiere at the Camerimage festival in Torun, Poland, which focuses on the art of cinematography. Baldwin, who stars in the film as Harland Rust, is not expected to attend the premiere.
Souza, who was injured during the shooting, will be the primary representative for the film at the festival. He expressed the importance of completing the project in Hutchins’s memory, stating that he believed she would have wanted it to be finished.
The shooting occurred on October 21, 2021, during a scene set in a 19th-century western church. Baldwin was informed that the gun he was using was “cold,” indicating it should not have been capable of firing live rounds. However, the gun discharged a live bullet, leading to the shocking discovery that real ammunition had made it onto the set, despite a ban on such materials.
In the aftermath, the film's armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and is currently serving an 18-month prison sentence. The first assistant director, Dave Halls, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor. Baldwin faced charges of involuntary manslaughter, which were initially dropped but later reinstated, only to have the case dismissed due to the withholding of evidence by the state.
Following Hutchins's death, her husband and son filed lawsuits against the production and Baldwin, citing inadequate safety protocols. As part of a settlement, Hutchins’s husband became an executive producer on the film, which will financially benefit him and their son. The theatrical distribution partner for the film has yet to be announced.
The film's plot remains largely unchanged, focusing on a boy who accidentally shoots a rancher and seeks to escape a death sentence with his grandfather, played by Baldwin. The production resumed in Montana in 2023 with an increased budget and a revised script that omitted the scene where the shooting occurred. The filmmakers utilized editing techniques to incorporate Hutchins’s footage into the final product.
Neither Hutchins’s husband nor their son will attend the premiere, although they support it. There have been ongoing tensions regarding the fulfillment of the settlement agreement, with claims that some payments are overdue. Hutchins’s family, who have also filed a lawsuit against the production, will not be present at the premiere, viewing it as an exploitation of Hutchins’s death.
The Camerimage festival has faced controversy beyond the “Rust” premiere, with its director commenting on gender equality in the film industry, leading to backlash from female cinematographers and the withdrawal of several filmmakers from the event. Cate Blanchett, the jury president, has called for meaningful discussions on gender representation in cinematography during the festival.