Alec Baldwin has to stand trial again. If convicted of negligent homicide, he could face up to 18 months in prison after the fatal accident on the set of “Rust” – but hiding is out of the question for the father of the family.
“Not guilty”. At the beginning of February, actor Alec Baldwin had his lawyers explain in writing to a court in the US state of New Mexico how he wanted to position himself in the negligent homicide case. In October 2021, during a rehearsal on the set of the Western “Rust,” he held the gun in his hand, the bullet of which killed camerawoman Halyna Hutchins and injured director Joel Souza. Baldwin emphasized again and again that he had not pulled the trigger. He was also told that the gun contained no real bullets.
Alec Baldwin back in court
Baldwin was first charged in January 2023, but the lawsuit was dropped after a few months. Investigators said further investigations and forensic analyzes were required. These are now complete, so that at the beginning of the year there was another indictment before a grand jury. If Baldwin were convicted, the actor could spend up to 18 months in prison. Above all, the upcoming trial means that he will not be able to put the tragedy behind him so easily in the future.
Since the dramatic incident more than two years ago, Baldwin has portrayed himself less as a filmmaker and actor than as a family man and husband. Alec and Hilaria Baldwin, it seemed, were only available in pairs. His wife took “control of his life,” Baldwin said of the time after the fatal accident. “I owe her everything I have,” he wrote in a tribute on Instagram. The couple repeatedly posts pictures of their “Baldwinitos,” their seven children.
US actor
Beau, lover and meanie – Alec Baldwin’s career in pictures
Even before the “Rust” drama, the two had shared their lives on Instagram, and now they sometimes post several times a day. The couple lounging on the sofa at home, at their wedding, the children in bibs – there is hardly a motif that the Baldwins have not yet shared with the world.
It was Hilaria who called Alec Baldwin from the police interview room shortly after the fatal shooting in Santa Fe. The children were fine, she assured her husband, who – as images from the surveillance camera show – seemed visibly traumatized. While searching for the right words, Baldwin confessed what was on his mind: “I don’t want to be a public person.”
A statement that doesn’t really fit with his actual actions after the drama. Because Baldwin continues to take place in public. Thanks to the Internet, even more so than at earlier points in his career.
Married life with Hilaria Baldwin
A few days after Hutchins’ death, it was Hilaria Baldwin who initially tried to keep the paparazzi away from her husband, until he made a short statement himself. It shouldn’t be the last. A few weeks later, Baldwin gave a major interview to ABC and again asserted that he had not pulled the trigger.
His lawyers had advised him against a TV interview, and his wife wasn’t keen on the idea at the time either. Baldwin took advantage of the opportunity and the wide reach of the prime-time conversation to once again protest his innocence. He didn’t want to portray himself as a victim, but: “I have the feeling that someone is responsible for what happened, and I can’t say who that is,” said Baldwin. “But I know I’m not.”
When filming on “Rust” resumed in spring 2023, Baldwin posted several photos from the set and of himself in his costume. It was the same outfit in which he had to face the police immediately after the fatal shot. “The last day of work in paradise,” he wrote in mid-May alongside a photo of the landscape. “My God, it felt good shaving that beard off,” he captioned a selfie after filming ended. Not really appropriate on the set of a film that caused so many people suffering. And also surprising given Baldwin’s confession that he would prefer to “not be a public person” anymore.
Baldwin has apparently found his own way of dealing with what is probably the greatest tragedy of his professional life. Instead of withdrawing or foregoing the spotlight altogether, he prefers to present his family life and his “Baldwinitos.” If in doubt: It’s better to publish one more family photo than to wait quietly in the dock for a verdict.
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Source: Stern
I am an author and journalist who has worked in the entertainment industry for over a decade. I currently work as a news editor at a major news website, and my focus is on covering the latest trends in entertainment. I also write occasional pieces for other outlets, and have authored two books about the entertainment industry.
