Angelina Jolie commented on the tragedy that took place in the set of “Rust,” where Halyna Hutchins, the film’s director of photography, was killed after a prop gun was discharged by Alec Baldwin. This event has shocked the filmmaking community, with many asking for there to be better safety measures in film sets.
© GettyImages“I can’t imagine what these families are going through. At this moment, the grief and the tragedy of that accident is quite overwhelming,” Jolie said in an interview with the U.K. Times. “I’ve always been very careful because I’ve had to work with guns a lot,” she said.
Angelina Jolie has starred in her fair share of action films, handling a variety of guns and dangerous props. During a long period of her career, she was one of Hollywood’s leading action stars, starring in films like “Tomb Raider,” “Wanted,” “Mr. and Mrs. Smith,” “Salt,” and more. “The way I’ve worked or checked when I’m directing, there are certain procedures. You have to take it very seriously,” she said.
© GettyImagesAlec Baldwin has spoken about the incident to the press, explaining that Halyna was a close friend of his and that he is now in constant contact with her husband. “She was my friend,” Alec said to the New York Post. “There are incidental accidents on film sets from time to time, but nothing like this. This is a one in a trillion episode, a one in a trillion event.” He then explained that while these events were highly unlikely, there have to be measures in place in order to prevent these incidents from occurring, which could include “plastic guns, rubber guns, no real armament.”
Baldwin has been in Vermont with his wife Hilaria since the production of “Rust” was paused. According to the New York Times, the production’s lawyers stated that the gun, a .45 Long Colt, was left unattended for a two hour lunch break and that it could have been tampered with before Baldwin fired it.
