Alec Baldwin: That’s why he doesn’t watch “Rust.”

Around three years after the death of camerawoman Halyna Hutchins (1979-2021) on the set of the western “Rust”, the film recently celebrated its premiere at the Camerimage festival in Poland. Lead actor Alec Baldwin (66), who was involved in the incident, will not watch the final version of the western, at least for the time being. “Not at the moment,” he says in an interview with the industry magazine “Variety”.

“Only because this is obviously the most difficult thing I’ve ever had to deal with in my life,” explains the actor. Hutchins was fatally shot during the shooting in October 2021 by a bullet from a revolver that Baldwin was holding. Director Joel Souza (51) was injured. A manslaughter trial against Baldwin was surprisingly dropped in the summer. The weapons master in charge on the “Rust” set, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, was sentenced to 18 months in prison in April for involuntary manslaughter.

“Apart from the victims themselves, what hurts me most is what it did to my wife,” the 66-year-old continues. His wife Hilaria Baldwin (40), with whom he has been married since 2012, was “very, very traumatized” by it. Everything in the marriage was going “pretty well,” including with their seven children – “and then the ground falls away. That’s very frightening and very disturbing.” The two are therefore trying to distance themselves from the project: “Because the film doesn’t stand on its own. It will always be overshadowed by this thing.”

“It was such a tragedy,” he remembers. In his words, “of course he would do everything to undo it.” Before the terrible incident, everyone on set was so happy, Baldwin continues. And he was also happy that the film was finally completed anyway. Apart from the tragedy with Hutchins, “Rust” became a better film in many aspects thanks to the later reshoots.

At the moment, however, he wants everything to do with “Rust” to disappear from his radar for the time being, “so that I can devote myself to other things and my children [guter] “Can be a father”. At his age, he wanted to use his energy for his offspring, but the last two years had drained him.