Video Shows Alec Baldwin Rehearse With Gun Day of ‘Rust’ Tragedy

In newly released footage from the set of his doomed indie Western Rust, Alec Baldwin—who accidentally shot and killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins with a prop gun last October—can be seen unholstering a revolver and pointing it at the camera while rehearsing a scene.

On Monday, the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office released the footage, filmed the same day Hutchins died, along with case documents, body camera video, incident reports, and witness interviews that include a sit-down with the actor himself.

No one has been charged in the shooting. Investigators are working to determine how the gun discharged—Baldwin has denied pulling the trigger—as well as how a live round made it into the actor’s prop gun and escaped notice during safety checks. Authorities said they still do not have important pieces of evidence, such as ballistics reports, necessary to complete the investigation. Director Joel Souza was shot in the shoulder during the freak incident but survived.

In the footage of Baldwin’s interview with two Santa Fe sheriffs, the actor says he’d gone to lunch on the day of the accident before stepping into rehearsal for a new shot. He and the crew assumed, “as we’ve done every time, that it’s a cold gun for rehearsal.”

“I take the gun out... I turn and cock the gun, the gun goes off,” Baldwin tells the officers. “It’s supposed to be a cold gun—nothing. No flash, charges, nothing.”

When asked if he believes someone could have placed a live round in the gun intentionally, the actor replies, “I can’t imagine who would.”

That said, he does mention the handful of workers who walked off set to protest poor working conditions that, according to the Los Angeles Times, included excessively long hours and lax observance of safety protocols.

Baldwin initially said the group had been fired before explaining the conditions surrounding their decision to leave the production. As for who might have planted the live round and whether it could have been a former crew member, the actor admits, “I have no idea.”

In a statement accompanying Monday’s document release, Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said: “Today the sheriff’s office is releasing all files associated with our ongoing investigation. The files are all related to the Rust movie set investigation and include lapel/dash camera footage from deputies and detectives, incident reports, crime scene photos, examination reports, witness interviews, set video and staff photos collected throughout the course of this investigation.”

The Times reported last October that Rust had faced multiple accidental prop-gun discharges on set before the incident that killed Hutchins. A camera operator had allegedly complained to a production manager about gun safety days before. Rust Movie Productions said in a statement at the time that it had not been made aware of “any official complaints concerning weapon or prop safety” and promised an internal review.

Meanwhile, Hutchins’ husband, Los Angeles lawyer Matthew Hutchins, told The Daily Beast that he had spoken with Baldwin, who he said was “being very supportive.” Eventually, however, Hutchins filed a lawsuit against the actor and others involved in the production for the “reckless” actions he alleged led to his 42-year-old wife’s death. Baldwin later blamed the suit for preventing Rust from being finished.

A series of text messages sent by Rust prop master Sarah Zachry after the incident also shed new light on the tragedy. In them, Zachry reportedly discussed the fact that Baldwin “preferred to use real guns and props on set, and referenced a time he didn’t want to act with a ‘rubber knife.’”

“Alec never liked anything fake like guns and even the rubber knife,” Zachry wrote. “He always wanted his real gun.”

Baldwin has not been charged with a crime, although charges have not been ruled out, say New Mexico authorities. Last week, the state of New Mexico fined the production $137,000 for “willful” safety failures.

“This tragic incident never would have happened if Rust Movie Productions, LLC had followed national film industry standards for firearm safety,” Environment Cabinet Secretary James Kenney said in a statement at the time.

In a December 2021 interview, Baldwin claimed he cocked the gun’s hammer but never pulled the trigger, before it went off.