Alec Baldwin Says He 'Didn't Pull The Trigger' In Fatal 'Rust' Movie Set Shooting

Alec Baldwin says he never pulled the trigger on a prop firearm that discharged on the "Rust" movie set. The October 21 shooting in Santa Fe killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and wounded director Joel Souza.

"The trigger wasn't pulled. I didn't pull the trigger," Baldwin told ABC News' George Stephanopoulos. "I would never point a gun at anyone and pull the trigger, never."

In a promotional clip of the interview released Wednesday, Baldwin breaks down when describing the late Hutchins. This is one of the first public statements Baldwin has made since the shooting. 

Hutchins was 42 years old when she was killed. The cast and crew have largely disagreed on where the fault lies — and several lawsuits have been filed in the weeks since the shooting — but the incident remains under investigation. No one has been charged.

In October, Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said that police recovered the bullet that injured Souza as well as "possible additional live rounds" on set. 

"I think there was some complacency on this set, and I think there are some safety issues that need to be addressed by the industry and possibly by the state of New Mexico, but I'll leave that up to the industry and the state as to what those need to be," Mendoza said. 

Authorities executed a search warrant Tuesday at PDQ Arm and Prop LLC in Albuquerque. According to documents, they retrieved .45 ammo, photographs, an ammo can and "Rust" documents.

Baldwin told ABC News he had "no idea" how a real bullet got onto the set or into the gun but said the shooting and death of Hutchins was the worst thing that ever happened to him. 

"I mean even now I find it hard to believe that," the 63-year-old actor said. "It doesn't seem real to me."

First published on December 1, 2021 / 5:35 PM

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