A woman died filming 'Rust.' Should you feel guilty watching Alec Baldwin's movie?

USA Today

02-05-2025

A woman died filming 'Rust.' Should you feel guilty watching Alec Baldwin's movie?
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'Rust' movie trailer: See Alec Baldwin as a Western outlaw
Alec Baldwin's Western drama "Rust" is out May 2.
Alec Baldwin's beleaguered Western movie 'Rust' hits theaters and video on demand May 2. Its release raises a thorny question: Is it OK to see this film?
As most people know, during a rehearsal in New Mexico on Oct. 21, 2021, Baldwin's gun discharged a live bullet, killing 42-year-old cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injuring director Joel Souza.
For some, watching the film might seem like a gruesome voyeuristic act, even if the scene in question is not a part of the final cut.
For others, including Hutchins' colleagues and family, supporting the film pays tribute to the final artistic pursuit of a departed wife, daughter and pal.
'Rust' movie review: Alec Baldwin's movie finds beauty amid tragedy
'Halyna's family knew just how important her art was to her, how much she lived and breathed it, and they did not want it to simply vanish,' Souza said via email to USA TODAY.
'Rust' represents the apex of Hutchins' cinematic work, and all efforts were made to convey that sentiment to those who worked on the movie after the fatal incident, Souza added.
'Halyna's mother spoke of how much she wanted her daughter's film to be completed and to be seen,' he said, adding that her husband, Matthew, 'made himself available to talk with people (in the production) who wanted to hear his thoughts on all of this.'
Seeing 'Rust' is a way of helping the family of Halyna Hutchins, a friend insists
In 2023, Matthew Hutchins said in a statement he was "grateful that the producers and the entertainment community have come together to pay tribute to Halyna's final work."
USA TODAY reached out to his lawyers for comment, but did not hear back before publication. Hutchins was made an executive producer on 'Rust' when filming resumed in Montana in 2023 amid myriad civil and criminal lawsuits sparked by the shooting.
A source close to the film told NPR last fall that none of the original producers will share in profits as part of a wrongful-death settlement reached between Hutchins and Baldwin, whose criminal charges were dismissed last year on a legal technicality.
Rachel Mason, Hutchins' longtime friend and the director of the Hulu documentary 'Last Take: Rust and the Story of Halyna,' echoes that those who screen 'Rust' will be helping her friend.
'By watching the film, you are supporting the family,' she tells USA TODAY. 'The money from the film goes to them.'
For those who returned to finish 'Rust' when filming resumed, 'so many suffered from PTSD, but they learned by being there they could do something for her,' Mason says.
The documentarian watched a lot of Hutchins' Western footage in compiling her film. She describes the scenes as breathtaking. 'Halyna was picky, she shot very few movies, and here on 'Rust,' she was operating at her pinnacle level,' she says. 'I don't like Westerns at all, but this film is exceptional in many ways.'
Mason describes a range of 'striking wide shots, with dust creeping up across the landscape, shots of horses lingering just so,' she says. 'Joel (Souza) made room for Halyna's art.'
Hollywood has dealt with tragedy on film sets before, and the show often goes on
Despite stringent safety requirements, Hollywood sets have seen accidents and deaths among cast and crew alike. And often in those cases, the final project does eventually get released.
In 1982, actor Vic Morrow and two child actors were killed on the set of 'The Twilight Zone' movie when a helicopter crashed during filming. The production continued despite a barrage of lawsuits.
In 1993, actor Brandon Lee, son of legendary martial artist Bruce Lee, died on the set of 'The Crow' when a prop gun loaded with dummy bullets struck Lee with enough force to cause fatal internal injuries. The movie was completed using special effects and a stunt double, and remains Lee's crowning achievement.
In the case of many big-budget productions, financial concerns might drive the decision to carry on. But 'Rust' was a relatively low-budget affair, which critics argue led to lax safety on the set that contributed to the tragedy. While Baldwin has settled civil suits, "Rust" armorer Hannah Guitierrez-Reed is serving 18 months in jail for involuntary manslaughter as she was deemed responsible for the appearance of live rounds on the set.
While Baldwin could likely have shelved the film after Hutchins' death, it does appear the decision to resume was driven largely by her family's desire to see the project completed for both emotional and financial reasons.
Baldwin has not himself commented on why he, as star and producer of 'Rust,' opted to resume production after the shooting. Matt DelPiano, the actor's representative, said in an email to USA TODAY that Baldwin, currently starring in the TLC reality series 'The Baldwins,' would not be commenting about the release of 'Rust.'
The decision to return to the directorial helm of 'Rust' was difficult for Souza, who is reminded daily of the tragedy. He sustained shoulder injuries when the bullet that killed Hutchins also struck him. 'It ruined me,' he said in a Vanity Fair interview last summer.
But in returning to "Rust," he found some peace and a lot of purpose.
'Halyna was on my mind every single day,' Souza wrote to USA TODAY. "You could feel that with everyone there. Just how seriously they took this and what it meant for them to be there. As for me, I always thought it was important to make clear to people why I decided to come back, which was to honor my friend and finish what we started together.'