Rust director Joel Souza has shared more thoughts on his controversial Western movie, which has been marred by the on-set accident that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins when Alec Baldwin’s gun accidentally discharged.
Speaking in a new interview with The Guardian, Souza discussed his nonexistent relationship with Baldwin, who chose to film a reality TV show, The Baldwins, with his family—documenting his life amid his involuntary manslaughter trial earlier this year. Asked whether he watched it, Souza replied: “I think I was busy hitting myself in the face with a frying pan that night.”
He added: “We’re not friends. We’re not enemies. There’s no relationship.”
Souza also said he was originally “repelled by the thought of going back” to finish the film, which after three and a half years finally opens in theaters this week.
After sitting with it for a while, he explained that finishing the movie started to “appeal” because he “couldn’t live with the idea of someone else doing it.” Not only that, Hutchins’ family wanted to honor her memory by sharing her final work; so he agreed to complete it.
Despite the decision to move forward, he admitted it wasn’t easy returning to set. “I was a mess going in and a mess coming out,” he explained. “The crew carried me through. My family carried me through. Emotionally, I was all over the map.”
Recalling “bad decision after bad decision” in the lead up to the shooting, Souza said he wishes he “never wrote the damn movie.”
In the aftermath of the shooting, a charge of involuntary manslaughter against Baldwin was dismissed at trial when it emerged that the prosecution had mishandled evidence. However, the film’s prop armourer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed wasn’t so fortunate, being handed an 18-month prison sentence for her role in the 2021 death of Hutchins.
The firearm, used by Baldwin, was supposed to contain dummy rounds—fake bullets that look and sound like real ones—but instead carried a live round. Souza himself was also hospitalized after being struck in the shoulder by the same projectile that hit Hutchins.
“Sometimes it’s fine. Sometimes it catches on fire,” Souza said of his shoulder. “The physical therapist at the time said, ‘We’re going to get you back to 70% range of motion.’ I looked shocked. They were like, ‘You’re almost 50. Don’t kid yourself you had 100% to start with.’”
Arriving in theaters on Friday (May 2), Rust was finished with cinematographer Bianca Cline, but Hutchins has been honored with second-billing to Souza in the credits — which is unheard of for a cinematographer. Her name is also featured in the credits in Ukrainian as well as in English. “I wanted to include that for her mother,” Souza explained.
Klook.com
