Actor Alec Baldwin is suing three film crew members and one other individual whose negligence he alleges led to the fatal shooting of a cinematographer with a gun he was holding on the set of a western film called “Rust” last year.
Baldwin is suing the film’s first assistant director, who handed Baldwin the gun and said it was safe, and its armorer, who was in charge of guns and ammunition on the set, the New York Times reported.
Also named as defendants are the crew member in charge of props and a man described as the film’s main weapons supplier.
The lawsuit cites previously-released evidence that the supplier’s inventory was poorly organized, as well as an FBI report that revealed there were more live bullets elsewhere on the set, including in a bandoleer Baldwin wore that day, the Times reported.
Baldwin’s lawsuit stems from one that was filed last year against him and several others by the script supervisor, who alleged the shooting was “a likely result” of negligence and caused her severe emotional distress.
His lawsuit asks for compensation for any damages to him that may arise from the script supervisor’s suit, and claims that his career has already been hindered by the shooting.
“More than anyone else on that set, Baldwin has been wrongfully viewed as the perpetrator of this tragedy. … Baldwin seeks to clear his name,” the lawsuit says, according to NPR.
Baldwin was practicing drawing an old-fashioned revolver on set Oct. 21, 2021 when it fired, killing 42-year-old cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and wounding director Joel Souza. The 64-year-old actor later claimed he cocked the gun’s hammer, but didn’t pull the trigger.
The Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Office in October gave local prosecutors its final investigative report on the incident as they continue deciding whether to press criminal charges, according to the Times. The findings of report are not yet public.
