It is still not clear who is ultimately to blame for the tragic death of a camerawoman on the set of the western “Rust”. Now the assistant director comes into focus – he had already attracted negative attention in previous productions.
The incidents on the set of the western “Rust” last Thursday are still preoccupying the investigative authorities. Chief Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins died after a fatal shot was released in a prop weapon used by Alec Baldwin. Director Joel Souza was seriously injured.
The question of who is to blame for the tragedy is getting louder and louder. Initially, the gun master Hannah Gutierrez-Reed came into focus, who is still young and inexperienced and with “Rust” is only making her second film in this position.
Alec Baldwin received the deadly weapon from someone else: it was assistant director Dave Halls who thrust the revolver into his hand – apparently without examining it beforehand. “He should be our last line of defense and he has let us down,” a film production employee told the online magazine “Daily Beast”. “He’s the last person who should look at the gun.”
Assistant director Dave Halls handed the gun to Alec Baldwin
The magazine refers to an affidavit. According to this, weapons master Gutierrez-Reed put three guns on a wagon, Halls then took one of them, gave it to Baldwin and called it a “cold gun” – a cold revolver. Which means something like: not loaded – neither with live ammunition nor with blank cartridges.
According to a second source, it would have been the assistant director’s job to check this out personally. “This check alone would have prevented this accident,” the person is quoted as saying.
The 911 overheard script supervisor Mamie Mitchell of Halls saying, “He should control the guns. He’s responsible for what happened.”
As it has now come out, it was probably not the first time that a shot went off with Dave Halls’ involvement. In 2019 he was assistant director on the drama “Freedom’s Path” when a gun discharged. A member of the sound crew was injured at the time. The film production company Rock Soul Studios then announced Halls, as reported by CNN.
At that time the position was filled. This did not end Dave Halls’ career: As his filmography listed on “IMDB” shows, he continued to find regular employment as an assistant director. His last assignment for the time being was with “Rust”.
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