Attention turns to two men who know more about fatal shooting on set of Rust movie

As police continue their investigation, attention has moved to the two men who hold clues to the tragic Alec Baldwin gun accident.

While initial focus in the shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins by actor and producer Alec Baldwin has focused on the star himself, details have emerged that indicate two men who were on the set of Rust may know more about the cause of the tragic accident than Baldwin.

Ukraine-born Hutchins, 42, was fatally shot by actor and producer Alec Baldwin during rehearsal of a scene on Thursday, local time, after he was handed a prop gun that turned out to be loaded with some type of projectile.

When the gun fired, Hutchins was struck in the chest, and died shortly after the incident, and the projectile passed through her body and into the shoulder of the film’s director Joel Souza, who was standing next to her.

WHO IS JOEL SOUZA?

Joel Souza, 48, wrote the screenplay for the Western movie, which Baldwin was coproducing as well as starring in.

“I just loved the story,” Baldwin told The Hollywood Reporter in July 2020. “As was the case with Crown Vic, a movie that I made with [Joel] Souza, I love Joel’s writing.”

The day of the fatal Rust gun accident, Souza had been crouching beside Hutchins as they lined up a shot, which is how he also got hit by the bullet or shrapnel, which is yet to be determined. Souza was hospitalised when crew called 911 for ambulances, and then he was released, however Hutchins died while being transported to emergency care.

Writer/director Joel Souza attends the "Crown Vic" New York screening in 2019 in New York. He said he is “gutted” by the shooting of Halyna Hutchins. Picture: Getty Images

Souza said in a statement on Saturday, local time, that he was “gutted” by the loss of his friend and award-winning colleague Hutchins, who leaves behind a husband and a son.

“She was kind, vibrant, incredibly talented, fought for every inch, and always pushed me to be better,” he told Deadline, an entertainment news outlet.

The incident has sparked intense speculation on social media about how such an accident could have occurred despite detailed and long-established gun-safety protocols for film sets.

Armourers, or movie gun handlers, agree that Alec Baldwin should not have been pointing a firearm at the crew, or at any actual person, including another actor.

Alec Baldwin on the set of movie 'Rust' in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Picture: Instagram

Baldwin accidentally shot and killed Halyna Hutchins on the set. Picture: Instagram

Typically, in movie scenes with guns, the shot is set up so that the gun is pointed away from the other person, then the film is edited to make sense.

Writer/director Joel Souza has previously made four other low budget films including Crown Vic, a police drama with guns, and would have been aware of gun safety protocol.

If Souza was lining up the shot when Baldwin drew the vintage Colt pistol and it discharged, he would potentially have more information on what led up to the tragic accident.

But Souza is not the man at the centre of accusations over the tragedy.

Blame is being placed with is first assistant director Dave Halls.

WHO IS DAVE HALLS?

Dave Halls is an established assistant director with credits including Bad Santa, The Matrix Reloaded, and Fargo.

In a chilling coincidence he also worked as the first assistant director on the second unit of The Crow: Salvation, the sequel to The Crow, which is the 1993 film during which Brandon Bruce Lee was fatally shot by a prop gun.

On Sunday, local time, the New York Post reported that Halls had previously allowed unsafe working conditions on another movie set.

Assistant director Dave Halls is the man who handed Alec Baldwin the gun that killed Halyna Hutchins. Picture: IMDB

Dave Halls came off at first as “older, affable” said prop maker Maggie Goll who worked with him on a Hulu series. “But that facade soon disappeared,” she said.

Goll is a special effects technician and pyrotechnician who began work on the set of Into the Dark in February 2019.

“He did not maintain a safe working environment. Sets were almost always allowed to become increasingly claustrophobic, no established fire lanes, exits blocked … safety meetings were nonexistent,” she continued.

"Sets were almost always allowed to become increasingly claustrophobic, no established fire lanes, exits blocked," prop maker Maggie Goll said.
https://t.co/v7OTlUCbX3

— WNDU (@WNDU) October 24, 2021

Goll recalled how Halls pushed to continue filming after the production’s lead pyrotechnician had experienced a medical emergency.

She also claimed that Halls neglected to hold safety meetings or inform the crew ahead of time if there was a gun on the set.

According to a search warrant filed by the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Department and obtained by the Associated Press, on the set of Rust, Halls had picked up one of three guns from a mobile cart that was outside the church set where the scene was being rehearsed.

The guns had been prepared and laid out on the cart by the production’s armourer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed. As Halls handed the gun to Baldwin, he allegedly declared “cold gun,” meaning the weapon was not loaded.

Scrutiny is on Dave Halls who handed Alec Baldwin the gun that killed Halyna Hutchins and told the actor it was “cold” or not loaded. Picture: AFP

On a recording of the 911 call placed by veteran script supervisor Mamie Mitchell, she can be heard saying, “the f****** AD that yelled at me at lunch, asking about revisions... He’s supposed to check the guns. He’s responsible for what happens on the set.”

It has been presumed that she is referring to Halls in these comments.

As has been noted by crew and industry commentators, the duties of the first assistant director include overseeing safety on set as well as keeping production on schedule.

According to the Los Angeles Times, Halls was known for the latter.

Filmmaker Aaron B. Koontz, who worked with Halls twice on films said: “Dave is extremely efficient and he’s very good at keeping the pace going and just moving at the speed that you have to move at in order to make your days. He was a good manager of the day. Which all ADs have to be.”

A sign directs people to the road that leads to the Bonanza Creek Ranch where the movie "Rust" is being filmed. Picture: Getty Images

But Rust crew members disagree and told the Times said they were dismayed that Halls handed a loaded gun to Baldwin without thoroughly checking it.

“You don’t hand an actor a loaded gun,” one of the Rust crew members told the Times.

Just hours before the shooting, no matter how efficient Koontz claimed Halls to be, crew had walked off the set over working conditions.

Crew spoke with the paper on condition of anonymity and said: “Every day on that set, it was just go-go-go. They were in such a rush to get things done.”

Originally published as Attention turns to two men who know more about fatal shooting on set of Rust movie