After a lengthy investigation, it was announced this week that criminal charges are getting filed in relation to the death of Halyna Hutchins. In October 2021, Hutchins was killed during the production of the Western movie Rust which featured one of its producers, Alec Baldwin, as the lead star. Producer and star Alec Baldwin and armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed have been formally charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter as the investigation concludes, while assistant director Dave Halls took a plea deal for a charge of negligent use of a deadly weapon.

In the aftermath, Baldwin’s co-star Douglas Stewart is sharing his thoughts on the situation, which is tragic all around. The accident happened when Baldwin was holding a firearm declared by Halls as a “cold gun,” meaning it was safe to use, though that was unfortunately not the case. Those who’ve argued for criminal charges against Baldwin have stated that the actor had a responsibility to personally check the rounds, regardless of what he’d been told by Halls. But for Stewart, he says that it’s not the actor’s job to check firearm safety, as he tells TMZ.

MOVIEWEB VIDEO OF THE DAY

Baldwin is getting charged for the incident both as an actor and as a producer. When it comes to the latter, Stewart also doesn’t think Baldwin should be held liable, noting that he was more involved with the financials rather than on-set safety measures.

Rust Was Reported to Resume Filming This Month

     ABC

It was previously reported that Rust would continue filming this month after the filmmakers settled a wrongful death suit against them filed by Halyna Hutchins’ widower, Matthew Hutchins, who joined the project as an executive producer. It’s not yet clear if these criminal charges have impacted the plans to keep filming or if there have been other setbacks holding things up.

“I have no interest in engaging in recriminations or attribution of blame (to the producers or Mr. Baldwin),” a statement released by Matthew Hutchins noted. “All of us believe Halyna’s death was a terrible accident. I am grateful that the producers and the entertainment community have come together to pay tribute to Halyna’s final work.”