A producer for the film “Rust” made an announcement about the status of the film following the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Anjul Nigam made the comment at Cannes.
“Rust is obviously a horrific tragedy,” Nigam said.
He added, “The investigation will hopefully be resolved soon and will unveil what happened. Obviously, there will be people out there who will have negative perspectives, but we’re confident about continuing to make quality movies.”
Nigam continued, “We’re confident we’ll be able to complete the movie.”
Hutchins died in October 2021 after Alec Baldwin discharged a prop firearm on the set of the film.
Fox News noted the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Department’s investigation continues.
Sheriff Adan Mendoza previously responded to Baldwin’s claim that he did not pull the trigger.
“Guns don’t just go off,” Mendoza told Fox News. “So whatever needs to happen to manipulate the firearm, he did that and it was in his hands.”
Rust Movie Productions claimed in a filing a “safety meeting was held the morning of the incident,” as IJR reported.
“The law properly permits producers to delegate such critical functions as firearm safety to experts in that field and does not place such responsibility on producers whose expertise is in arranging financing and contracting for the logistics of filming,” the company said in the filing.
The company claims it “did not ‘willfully’ violate any safety protocol, and in fact enforced all applicable safety protocols.”
New Mexico workplace safety regulators issued the maximum fine possible of $136,793 to the company in April, as IJR reported.
Hutchins’ family filed a lawsuit against Baldwin and the movie’s producers in February.
Attorney Brian Pannish said the “reckless conduct and cost-cutting measures” of Baldwin and the producers “led to the death of Halyna Hutchins,” as CBS News reported.
An attorney for Baldwin and other producers told the outlet, “He, Halyna and the rest of the crew relied on the statement by the two professionals responsible for checking the gun that it was a ‘cold gun’ – meaning there is no possibility of a discharge, blank or otherwise. This protocol has worked on thousands of films, with millions of discharges, as there has never before been an incident on a set where an actual bullet harmed anyone.”
The statement continues, “Actors should be able to rely on armorers and prop department professionals, as well as assistant directors, rather than deciding on their own when a gun is safe to use.”
