Distraught Alec Baldwin speaks out: 'Halyna Hutchins shooting a one in a trillion event'
31 October 2021, 07:29 | Updated: 31 October 2021, 07:52
Alec Baldwin has spoken out about the on-set shooting of Halyna Hutchins, describing her as his "friend" and the incident as a "one in a trillion episode".
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The veteran actor told paparazzi that he was not allowed to comment on an ongoing investigation, under instruction from police in New Mexico, where he was filming.
But he said Ms Hutchins' husband is "overwhelmed with grief" and that he is "very worried" about the family.
The tired-looking actor said in a video posted by Hollywood site TMZ: "It's an active investigation in terms of, a woman died. She was my friend, she was my friend.
"The day I arrived in Santa Fe to start shooting I took her to dinner with Joel, the director."
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Mr Baldwin was filming Rust, a Western movie, near Santa Fe when he accidentally shot Ms Hutchins, a well-regarded cinematographer.
Joel Souza, the director, was also injured in the incident but he has since left hospital and is recovering.
Production is unlikely to restart after the tragedy, Mr Baldwin told the paparazzi, but he added he is "extremely interested" in efforts to limit the use of guns on film and TV sets.
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He said he had met with Ms Hutchins' husband and son, but did not want to share further details on it.
"The guy is overwhelmed with grief - there are incidental accidents on film sets from time to time but nothing like this, this is a one in a trillion episode.
"So he is in shock… we are in constant contact with him because we are very worried about his family and his kid and as I said we are eagerly awaiting for the sheriff's department to tell us what their investigation has yielded."
Authorities have said they are investigating what kind of round was in the gun that killed 42-year-old Ms Hutchins, and who put the ammunition in it.
A prosecutor said last week that there were an "enormous amount of bullets" on the set.
