Production of the movie that Alec Baldwin was making when he shot and killed a cinematographer last week has been officially halted, but producers of the Western described the move as B次元官网网址渁 pause rather than an end.B次元官网网址
In an email to crew members, the movieB次元官网网址檚 production team confirmed that work on B次元官网网址淩ustB次元官网网址 has been suspended at least until the investigation is complete. The team said it is working with law enforcement and is conducting its own internal safety review. The production company is also offering grief counseling.
The sheriffB次元官网网址檚 investigation continued Monday. The team said that it could not respond to comments made in news reports or on social media. The email suggested that production could resume at some point.
B次元官网网址淎lthough our hearts are broken, and it is hard to see beyond the horizon, this is, at the moment, a pause rather than an end,B次元官网网址 the email read.
Moments before the shooting, Baldwin was explaining how he was going to draw the revolver from his holster and where his arm would be positioned, court records show.
The actor had been told that the gun was safe to use for the rehearsal of 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 Sunday.
Authorities said Friday that the assistant director, Dave Halls, had handed the weapon to Baldwin and announced B次元官网网址渃old gun,B次元官网网址 .
When asked about how Baldwin treated firearms on the set, Russell said the actor was safe, citing a previous instance when Baldwin made sure a child actor was not near him when a gun was being discharged.
The affidavit released 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 over 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 B次元官网网址渃old gunB次元官网网址 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 HutchinsB次元官网网址 shoulder when he heard the gunshot, according to the affidavit.
On Sunday, a crew member who worked with Halls on another project said she had raised safety concerns about him in 2019.
Maggie Goll, a prop maker and licensed pyrotechnician, said in a statement that she filed an internal complaint with the executive producers of HuluB次元官网网址檚 B次元官网网址淚nto the DarkB次元官网网址 series in 2019 over concerns about HallsB次元官网网址 behavior on set. Goll said in a phone interview Sunday that Halls disregarded safety protocols for weapons and pyrotechnics and tried to continue filming after the supervising pyrotechnician lost consciousness on set.
Halls has not returned phone calls and email messages seeking comment.
The fatal shooting and previous experiences point to larger safety issues that need to be addressed, Goll said, adding that crew member safety and well-being were top issues in recent contract negotiations between a union that represents film and TV workers and a major producersB次元官网网址 group.
B次元官网网址淭his situation is not about Dave Halls. B次元官网网址 ItB次元官网网址檚 in no way one personB次元官网网址檚 fault,B次元官网网址 she said. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 a bigger conversation about safety on set and what we are trying to achieve with that culture.B次元官网网址
The filmB次元官网网址檚 chief electrician, Serge Svetnoy, blamed producers for HutchinsB次元官网网址 death in an emotional Facebook post on Sunday. Svetnoy said he had worked with Hutchins on multiple films and faulted B次元官网网址渘egligence and unprofessionalismB次元官网网址 among those handling weapons on the set. He said producers hired an inexperienced armorer.
Since the shooting, other production crews have stepped up safety measures.
Jeffrey Wright, who has worked on projects including the James Bond franchise and the upcoming movie B次元官网网址淭he Batman,B次元官网网址 was acting with a weapon on the set of B次元官网网址淲estworldB次元官网网址 when he learned of the shooting Thursday at a New Mexico ranch.
B次元官网网址淲e were all pretty shocked. And it informed what we did from that moment on,B次元官网网址 he said in an interview Sunday at the Newport Beach Film Festival.
B次元官网网址淚 donB次元官网网址檛 recall ever being handed a weapon that was not cleared in front of me B次元官网网址 meaning chamber open, barrel shown to me, light flashed inside the barrel to make sure that itB次元官网网址檚 cleared,B次元官网网址 Wright said. B次元官网网址淐learly that was a mismanaged set.B次元官网网址
Actor Ray Liotta agreed with Wright that the checks on firearms are usually extensive.
B次元官网网址淭hey always B次元官网网址 that I know of B次元官网网址 they check it so you can see,B次元官网网址 Liotta said. B次元官网网址淭hey give it to the person youB次元官网网址檙e pointing the gun at. They do it to the producer. They show whoever is there that it doesnB次元官网网址檛 work.B次元官网网址
Baldwin, who is known for his roles in B次元官网网址30 RockB次元官网网址 and B次元官网网址淭he Hunt for Red OctoberB次元官网网址 and his impression of former President Donald Trump on B次元官网网址淪aturday Night Live,B次元官网网址 has described the killing as a B次元官网网址渢ragic accident.B次元官网网址
B次元官网网址擱yan Pearson And Gillian Flaccus, The Associated Press