`Rust' producers plan to finish movie after investigation concludes
LOS ANGELES >> Several months after Alec Baldwin accidentally shot and killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins while on the set of “Rust,” one of the film's producers says he and others plan to forge ahead.
Rust Movie Productions is still being investigated by the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office after the company was accused of cutting corners and flouting safety guidelines that led to the fatal misfiring of the gun on Oct. 21, 2021. Once the investigation concludes, however, co-producer Anjul Nigam believes the team will pick up where they left off with the film.
“We're confident we'll be able to complete the movie,” Nigam recently told The Hollywood Reporter. “`Rust' is obviously a horrific tragedy. The investigation will hopefully be resolved soon and will unveil what happened. Obviously, there will be people out there who will have negative perspectives, but we're confident about continuing to make quality movies.”
Last month, the New Mexico Environment Department's Occupational Health and Safety Bureau hit “Rust” producers with a $136,793 fine for various safety violations, the largest it's ever doled out against a production company. New Mexico Environment Cabinet Secretary James Kenney said managers “demonstrated plain indifference” to employee safety and claimed they knew gun safety protocol was not being followed yet refused to act.
“Our investigation found that this tragic incident never would have happened if Rust Movie Productions LLC had followed national film industry standards for firearm safety,” Kenney said in a statement last month.
Hutchins' family filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against Alec Baldwin and other producers in February.
Last week, Baldwin and Nigam announced they had formed a new TV and film company in the wake of the incident, and that they would be selling their first project at the Cannes Film Festival, which begins today.