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Friday, October 22, 2021
Alec Baldwin Fired Prop Gun That Killed DP and Wounded Director
Variety: Alec Baldwin fired a prop gun while filming a scene in New Mexico on Thursday, causing the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and wounding director Joel Souza.
13 comments:
Brooke
said...
When I heard this news yesterday I was truly shocked and couldn't believe that something so tragic happened on this set. Furthermore, the amount of grief and shock that must be in everyone's mind that was on that set is unthinkable. I can't even begin to imagine what Alec Baldwin is going through having been the one who fired the prop gun that resulted in someone dying. When I first heard the news about this, I was worried that there might be a "the show must go on" mentality but it seems that they are doing the right thing and halting production. I think that the halting of production was also mandatory due to the fact that the sheriff's office now has to be involved to investigate this. I was glad to read that the show is providing counseling services to those who were on set during the incident. This also just goes to show that we all need to take the time to be extra careful when handling weapons on stage.
This entire situation is upsetting in every way. I've seen extreme viewpoints from both sides all over social media outright blaming Baldwin or the Props Crew, but I don't know how they can draw those conclusions right away. First of all, we need to gather more information and mourn the loss of Halyna Hutchins. I've even seen some headlines that say that there weren't even blanks in the gun, but actual live rounds (maybe this is normal but I haven't heard of that and feel like it's rather intense). This is an unfortunate lesson we should never have to learn about in this way, but it is a call to action to all of us to be more careful and examine our safety standards all around. I believe this goes hand in hand with a lot of IATSE demands, because it proves workers need to be alert, focused, rested, and fed in order to carry on the demands of a set. The use of weapons must be treated incredibly seriously,
It is incredibly unsettling to hear that an accidental firing of a gun resulted in the loss of life on a film set. I am troubled that this could happen. I do not know if safety protocols were not followed, if someone was not doing their job, or if someone made a mistake that was not caught in time. It is so tragic that this happened, and I hope that an investigation can figure out exactly what went wrong. The cast and crew on set must be so devastated right now. Alec Baldwin must be completely distraught to have accidently caused the death of their DP and injured their director. I hope that they are all able to get the grief counseling they will undoubtedly need and that they are able to put their mental health first before even considering returning to filming. My heart goes out to everyone affected by this incident.
This really shocked me when I first heard about this late last night. This is such a tragic event to happen and I really can’t even begin to imagine who actually is at fault for this. My inclination is to believe that there are a multitude of things that went wrong. The prop master could have not done all of the safety tests, Baldwin may have not listened to proper instructions, etc. It is my understanding that when guns are used in films, there is a great deal of safety preparation that goes along with this being possible. I was surprised to hear about this because I had figured with all of the advancements in technology and just in general that we would have grown beyond an accident like this, but this is a good lesson that everyone is still human and makes mistakes. I am really sad that this happened and I hope they can get to the bottom of this issue so it doesn’t happen again.
This tragic incident was very concerning and distressing to hear about. Alec Baldwin accidentally killing a crew member with what was supposed to be a safe prop firearm raises several alarming concerns regarding safety and accurately checking props on set. There is currently an investigation regarding how this event occurred, involving detectives interviewing witnesses to piece together what happened. Many of the crew members were also deeply disturbed by these recent actions and have gone to social media to share their concerns. This is distressing because prop weapons should have built-in safety precautions with staff checking that these measures have taken place, concerning the public as to how a fatal event like this could have occurred on set. I personally have taken on a very scrutinizing perspective on the production team of this film because the effort and proper safety measures were ignored and not taken seriously, and that cost someone their life.
I am still in a state of disbelief over this whole situation. A multitude of factors are coming together to make this whole deal difficult for me to process. Number one is the loss of life by the hands of such a prominent figure. Number two is such a tragically ironic occurrence cropping up in the midst of one of the greatest labor movements in entertainment history. Number three is the flurry of conflicting opinions (not necessarily mutually exclusive ones) I see going around like Baldwin will regrettably have to live with this for the rest of his life, and Baldwin was a producer and so has a hand in the safety measures taken on set, et cetera. Fourth is that Wikipedia has been updated very thoroughly; Baldwin's page has it, Joel Souza's page has it, Halyna Hutchins's page has it, a new page has been made for 2021 Rust shooting incident. I just hope to see more efforts put forth by people higher up on the ladder to protect worker rights.
It seems we have learned nothing from the crow. I'm, not trying to blamestorm here but for this to have happened someone had to have screwed up. From what I have heard the gun was loaded with live rounds? Someone should lose their job and be kept from working in a role where negligence could result in death. Prop guns should never at any point in their existences be loaded with live ammunition. Not only has someone lost their life, Alec Baldwin was put in a situation where someone else caused him to kill someone.
How so many safety measures and procedures could have been missed to result in two people being shot and one of them losing their lives is beyond me. Prop firearms are not something to be treated lightly and when we don't treat any dangerous items with the seriousness they require, be they saws or prop firearms or working at heights, there are grave consequences and unfortunately we had to learn this lesson the hard way.
When I first heard of this tragedy, I was shocked. I cannot even begin to understand how something like this could happen on a professional set, and yet here we are. My heart goes out to the family and friends of Halyna Hutchins as well as the cast, crew, and everyone present that day. With all of the debate over gun laws and safety in the United States, I am shocked that an accidental death like this would occur on a high-budget film set, of all places. I’ve seen a couple other articles on this tragedy and have learned that it was an actual vintage firearm, and that a real bullet was fired from it – which makes me wonder all the more – why was there a bullet in the gun in the first place? How could such gross negligence occur that a live, loaded weapon was given to an actor who was told it was a “cold gun?” I cannot even begin to imagine being in the shoes of Alec Baldwin, who has handled prop weapons countless times in films and show prior to this, and to have accidentally killed someone with a weapon believe to be unloaded and cold. I am morbidly curious to learn more about the incident, for as time has past, I have seen a lot of new information come out, including the fact that union workers had walked out just a day or days prior for several reasons, and I have seen the sayings about producers cutting corners. Only time will tell and reveal more details about this utter tragedy.
It's difficult to imagine the circumstances that went into this incident, and knowing that Alec Baldwin is going to have to live with this for the rest of his life, despite presumably none of it being his fault. I don't know if he'd ever feel safe using a prop gun on a set after this.
In regards to the safety protocol surrounding this, I just want to know how in the world did a live round make it on a film set, and even more how did it make it into a prop gun without being checked and cleared first? I've been in a theatrical production with a blank - firing prop gun before and as I'm aware there is supposed to be a single person responsible for any weapon on set? Local 44 apparently released a statement recently that there was a single "live round" in the weapon, and that none of the props, set decoration, special effects, and construction crew were union members, and there were actually no members on the call sheet for the production, more than likely due to the ongoing strike. So was there a stand-in then? Unfortunately more info is still being released so we don't know everything, but someone has to be responsible for care and oversight of the weapon.
I saw this on my social media page and was pretty horrified by the thing I was reading. I did not understand how this tragedy was even possible, and it is clear that it was no simple accident or oversight. Firstly, I don’t see how a live round was even allowed on set, and for what purpose. With something as dangerous as that, I can’t imagine all the safety procedures needed for that to happen. Even in our college theatre, we get scolded for not tying a knot right because it can be a possible hazard, so how was this even possible in a production setting? Secondly, why was it even pointed in the direction of the crew in the first place? I cannot imagine a situation where a gun, even a prop gun, would ever be pointed at the director of photography. Even without all the details of the case, I feel like we can all conclude that there was a fatal oversight, in part of everyone involved.
I am absolutely shocked that this incident occurred. I feel awful for Halyna Hutchins family, and I can’t imagine being Alec Baldwin right now knowing full well that he took a crewmembers life and almost killed another. This story just proves how much more needs to be done for safety precautions on set. I am still in awe that something like this could happen, but then I am taken back to my time of being on set as an extra in Madam Secretary. I did reenacting with a handful of revolutionary war units and once we where all offered the opportunity of being an extra on the shows “French Revolution” episode. This was lots of fun and an amazing opportunity, but the props department on set was for lack of a better word idiotic. This is because they made all of the revolutionary war reenactors use crummy Indian made musket instead of their own muskets. These muskets where poorly made and on top of it where loaded incorrectly. By the time it came to shoot them for the camera shot one of my good friends went to fire his prop musket and it completely blew up in his face permanently damaging eyesight in his right eye. I have attended hundreds of battle reenactments, and I have NEVER even heard of an incident like this. I truly believe that many firearms and props people within the film industry need to be taught much better about the weapons they use on set, because this happens far too often.
We always talk so heavily about prop weapon safety, and this is a tragic reminder of the importance in weapon tracking and safety. It is clearly too easy for something horrific to happen, for a literal gun to go unchecked and be fired directly at a member of the crew baffles me. What went wrong? Sure it could very well have been an "accident" but it is definitely a preventable one. We talk a lot about checklists, and lately through reading The Checklist Manifesto we've related those checklists to careful medical procedures. It is easy to write off that connection claiming that theatre isn't life and death. But clearly entertainment can be when dangerous situations are not carefully monitored. If there was a detailed checklist someplace on the steps to take with the gun before it is fired on set (let alone fired directly at a crew member) this tragedy very well could have been avoided. I feel bad for the backlash Alec Baldwin must be facing, and although he isn't the best person this wasn't on him. It is good to see the studio providing counseling for all those affected as well.
Firstly, this is truly terrible and I hope more precautions, regardless of how this came about, are taken in the future, and what happened is figured out. I think the way this article is constructed is interesting. I think it's great that it places the focus on Hutchins, and not Baldwin who everyone knows, however in some way that does seem like it is protecting him. I wish the photo at the top was of Hutchins. There is a lot of attention placed on what the company is doing to ‘make it right’ when they can’t. I wonder how this is an accident, especially if the gun was loaded with blanks. Hutchins would have had to have been shot at very close range. This article also makes me wonder what the training process for handling these prop firearms is. If indeed it was an accident, it obviously needs to be better.
13 comments:
When I heard this news yesterday I was truly shocked and couldn't believe that something so tragic happened on this set. Furthermore, the amount of grief and shock that must be in everyone's mind that was on that set is unthinkable. I can't even begin to imagine what Alec Baldwin is going through having been the one who fired the prop gun that resulted in someone dying. When I first heard the news about this, I was worried that there might be a "the show must go on" mentality but it seems that they are doing the right thing and halting production. I think that the halting of production was also mandatory due to the fact that the sheriff's office now has to be involved to investigate this. I was glad to read that the show is providing counseling services to those who were on set during the incident. This also just goes to show that we all need to take the time to be extra careful when handling weapons on stage.
This entire situation is upsetting in every way. I've seen extreme viewpoints from both sides all over social media outright blaming Baldwin or the Props Crew, but I don't know how they can draw those conclusions right away. First of all, we need to gather more information and mourn the loss of Halyna Hutchins. I've even seen some headlines that say that there weren't even blanks in the gun, but actual live rounds (maybe this is normal but I haven't heard of that and feel like it's rather intense). This is an unfortunate lesson we should never have to learn about in this way, but it is a call to action to all of us to be more careful and examine our safety standards all around. I believe this goes hand in hand with a lot of IATSE demands, because it proves workers need to be alert, focused, rested, and fed in order to carry on the demands of a set. The use of weapons must be treated incredibly seriously,
It is incredibly unsettling to hear that an accidental firing of a gun resulted in the loss of life on a film set. I am troubled that this could happen. I do not know if safety protocols were not followed, if someone was not doing their job, or if someone made a mistake that was not caught in time. It is so tragic that this happened, and I hope that an investigation can figure out exactly what went wrong. The cast and crew on set must be so devastated right now. Alec Baldwin must be completely distraught to have accidently caused the death of their DP and injured their director. I hope that they are all able to get the grief counseling they will undoubtedly need and that they are able to put their mental health first before even considering returning to filming. My heart goes out to everyone affected by this incident.
This really shocked me when I first heard about this late last night. This is such a tragic event to happen and I really can’t even begin to imagine who actually is at fault for this. My inclination is to believe that there are a multitude of things that went wrong. The prop master could have not done all of the safety tests, Baldwin may have not listened to proper instructions, etc. It is my understanding that when guns are used in films, there is a great deal of safety preparation that goes along with this being possible. I was surprised to hear about this because I had figured with all of the advancements in technology and just in general that we would have grown beyond an accident like this, but this is a good lesson that everyone is still human and makes mistakes. I am really sad that this happened and I hope they can get to the bottom of this issue so it doesn’t happen again.
This tragic incident was very concerning and distressing to hear about. Alec Baldwin accidentally killing a crew member with what was supposed to be a safe prop firearm raises several alarming concerns regarding safety and accurately checking props on set. There is currently an investigation regarding how this event occurred, involving detectives interviewing witnesses to piece together what happened. Many of the crew members were also deeply disturbed by these recent actions and have gone to social media to share their concerns. This is distressing because prop weapons should have built-in safety precautions with staff checking that these measures have taken place, concerning the public as to how a fatal event like this could have occurred on set. I personally have taken on a very scrutinizing perspective on the production team of this film because the effort and proper safety measures were ignored and not taken seriously, and that cost someone their life.
I am still in a state of disbelief over this whole situation. A multitude of factors are coming together to make this whole deal difficult for me to process. Number one is the loss of life by the hands of such a prominent figure. Number two is such a tragically ironic occurrence cropping up in the midst of one of the greatest labor movements in entertainment history. Number three is the flurry of conflicting opinions (not necessarily mutually exclusive ones) I see going around like Baldwin will regrettably have to live with this for the rest of his life, and Baldwin was a producer and so has a hand in the safety measures taken on set, et cetera. Fourth is that Wikipedia has been updated very thoroughly; Baldwin's page has it, Joel Souza's page has it, Halyna Hutchins's page has it, a new page has been made for 2021 Rust shooting incident. I just hope to see more efforts put forth by people higher up on the ladder to protect worker rights.
It seems we have learned nothing from the crow. I'm, not trying to blamestorm here but for this to have happened someone had to have screwed up. From what I have heard the gun was loaded with live rounds? Someone should lose their job and be kept from working in a role where negligence could result in death. Prop guns should never at any point in their existences be loaded with live ammunition. Not only has someone lost their life, Alec Baldwin was put in a situation where someone else caused him to kill someone.
How so many safety measures and procedures could have been missed to result in two people being shot and one of them losing their lives is beyond me. Prop firearms are not something to be treated lightly and when we don't treat any dangerous items with the seriousness they require, be they saws or prop firearms or working at heights, there are grave consequences and unfortunately we had to learn this lesson the hard way.
When I first heard of this tragedy, I was shocked. I cannot even begin to understand how something like this could happen on a professional set, and yet here we are. My heart goes out to the family and friends of Halyna Hutchins as well as the cast, crew, and everyone present that day. With all of the debate over gun laws and safety in the United States, I am shocked that an accidental death like this would occur on a high-budget film set, of all places. I’ve seen a couple other articles on this tragedy and have learned that it was an actual vintage firearm, and that a real bullet was fired from it – which makes me wonder all the more – why was there a bullet in the gun in the first place? How could such gross negligence occur that a live, loaded weapon was given to an actor who was told it was a “cold gun?” I cannot even begin to imagine being in the shoes of Alec Baldwin, who has handled prop weapons countless times in films and show prior to this, and to have accidentally killed someone with a weapon believe to be unloaded and cold. I am morbidly curious to learn more about the incident, for as time has past, I have seen a lot of new information come out, including the fact that union workers had walked out just a day or days prior for several reasons, and I have seen the sayings about producers cutting corners. Only time will tell and reveal more details about this utter tragedy.
It's difficult to imagine the circumstances that went into this incident, and knowing that Alec Baldwin is going to have to live with this for the rest of his life, despite presumably none of it being his fault. I don't know if he'd ever feel safe using a prop gun on a set after this.
In regards to the safety protocol surrounding this, I just want to know how in the world did a live round make it on a film set, and even more how did it make it into a prop gun without being checked and cleared first? I've been in a theatrical production with a blank - firing prop gun before and as I'm aware there is supposed to be a single person responsible for any weapon on set? Local 44 apparently released a statement recently that there was a single "live round" in the weapon, and that none of the props, set decoration, special effects, and construction crew were union members, and there were actually no members on the call sheet for the production, more than likely due to the ongoing strike. So was there a stand-in then? Unfortunately more info is still being released so we don't know everything, but someone has to be responsible for care and oversight of the weapon.
I saw this on my social media page and was pretty horrified by the thing I was reading. I did not understand how this tragedy was even possible, and it is clear that it was no simple accident or oversight. Firstly, I don’t see how a live round was even allowed on set, and for what purpose. With something as dangerous as that, I can’t imagine all the safety procedures needed for that to happen. Even in our college theatre, we get scolded for not tying a knot right because it can be a possible hazard, so how was this even possible in a production setting? Secondly, why was it even pointed in the direction of the crew in the first place? I cannot imagine a situation where a gun, even a prop gun, would ever be pointed at the director of photography. Even without all the details of the case, I feel like we can all conclude that there was a fatal oversight, in part of everyone involved.
I am absolutely shocked that this incident occurred. I feel awful for Halyna Hutchins family, and I can’t imagine being Alec Baldwin right now knowing full well that he took a crewmembers life and almost killed another. This story just proves how much more needs to be done for safety precautions on set. I am still in awe that something like this could happen, but then I am taken back to my time of being on set as an extra in Madam Secretary. I did reenacting with a handful of revolutionary war units and once we where all offered the opportunity of being an extra on the shows “French Revolution” episode. This was lots of fun and an amazing opportunity, but the props department on set was for lack of a better word idiotic. This is because they made all of the revolutionary war reenactors use crummy Indian made musket instead of their own muskets. These muskets where poorly made and on top of it where loaded incorrectly. By the time it came to shoot them for the camera shot one of my good friends went to fire his prop musket and it completely blew up in his face permanently damaging eyesight in his right eye. I have attended hundreds of battle reenactments, and I have NEVER even heard of an incident like this. I truly believe that many firearms and props people within the film industry need to be taught much better about the weapons they use on set, because this happens far too often.
We always talk so heavily about prop weapon safety, and this is a tragic reminder of the importance in weapon tracking and safety. It is clearly too easy for something horrific to happen, for a literal gun to go unchecked and be fired directly at a member of the crew baffles me. What went wrong? Sure it could very well have been an "accident" but it is definitely a preventable one. We talk a lot about checklists, and lately through reading The Checklist Manifesto we've related those checklists to careful medical procedures. It is easy to write off that connection claiming that theatre isn't life and death. But clearly entertainment can be when dangerous situations are not carefully monitored. If there was a detailed checklist someplace on the steps to take with the gun before it is fired on set (let alone fired directly at a crew member) this tragedy very well could have been avoided. I feel bad for the backlash Alec Baldwin must be facing, and although he isn't the best person this wasn't on him. It is good to see the studio providing counseling for all those affected as well.
Firstly, this is truly terrible and I hope more precautions, regardless of how this came about, are taken in the future, and what happened is figured out. I think the way this article is constructed is interesting. I think it's great that it places the focus on Hutchins, and not Baldwin who everyone knows, however in some way that does seem like it is protecting him. I wish the photo at the top was of Hutchins. There is a lot of attention placed on what the company is doing to ‘make it right’ when they can’t. I wonder how this is an accident, especially if the gun was loaded with blanks. Hutchins would have had to have been shot at very close range. This article also makes me wonder what the training process for handling these prop firearms is. If indeed it was an accident, it obviously needs to be better.
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