Crew member in charge of prop gun that killed cinematographer was a ‘replacement brought in after workers walked off set of Rust’ following row about conditions and ‘two misfires’ days before tragedy: Alec Baldwin was told weapon was safe to use

  • Production crew on the set of Rust walked out on Thursday morning in a row over hotel rooms and long hours
  • They had wanted to be put up in Sante Fe, near the ranch where the movie was being shot, but instead were staying in Albuquerque, an hour away, and were too tired to drive every night after long shifts 
  • On Thursday, when they arrived to pack up, they found a team of local workers waiting to replace them
  • Halyna Hutchins decided to stay on the set and film with Alec Baldwin and the film director Joel Souza 
  • She had been advocating on behalf of her team for better working conditions
  • At 1.50pm, Baldwin fired a prop gun which he thought contained blank rounds
  • The projectile pierced through Hutchins’ chest and also struck the director behind her, who survived 
  • Hutchins was airlifted to the hospital but she was pronounced dead; there are now claims there were two other incidents earlier in the film’s shooting
  • Deadline cites an unnamed source who says a gun fired while someone was holding it in a cabin 
  • Union rules stipulate that no live rounds are ever to be used on a film set – the replacement crew are not believed to be union membersÂ