The case against Alec Baldwin is to be dropped. The US actor had fired a deadly shot at a camerawoman while filming.
The criminal case against Hollywood star Alec Baldwin for the fatal shooting of a camerawoman during a western shoot is to be dropped. This was announced by the actor’s lawyers on Thursday.
Baldwin accidentally shot and killed 42-year-old cinematographer Halyna Hutchins with a revolver during a rehearsal for low-budget western Rust in October 2021. The Colt .45 was loaded with a real bullet, but it is still unclear how this could have happened. Baldwin was subsequently charged with involuntary manslaughter. If convicted, he faces up to 18 months in prison and a $5,000 fine.
The production company Rust Movie Productions only announced on Tuesday that filming should resume later in the week. The “Rust” producers had already announced in February that shooting for the low-budget western would continue in the spring. Hutchins’ widower Matthew Hutchins will be involved as a producer. That was part of an out-of-court settlement last February, in exchange for which Matthew Hutchins withdrew his civil suit.
Alec Baldwin reacts to turn
Baldwin, known for films such as ‘The Hunt for Red October’ and ‘The Temptation of Blondes’ and the series ’30 Rock’, has denied any responsibility for Hutchins’ death. He claims he had no way of knowing there was live ammunition in the Colt. The US actor, who is one of the producers of “Rust”, had previously been given the gun with the words that it was “cold” – i.e. not loaded with live ammunition.
Soon after his attorneys made a public statement Thursday, Baldwin also went public. On Instagram, the actor responded to the turnaround in the case with a post. He shared a photo showing him with his wife Hilaria.
The snapshot appears to have been taken in a restaurant. The 65-year-old has his arms around his wife and his head is leaning on her shoulder. With his eyes closed, he smiles softly as she looks at the camera. “Everything I have I owe to this woman,” Baldwin writes, adding in parentheses, “And you, Luke.” This probably means his lawyer Luke Nikas. He had described the involuntary manslaughter charge as a miscarriage of justice, always emphasizing: “Mr. Baldwin had no reason to believe there was a live bullet in the gun or anywhere on the film set.”
Hilaria Baldwin had also stood behind her husband for the past year and a half and repeatedly defended him publicly. The two have been married since 2012 and have seven children together.
