Quentin Tarantino Says Alec Baldwin Was to Blame for Director’s Death on ‘Rust’ Set

Far from shying away from controversy, director and filmmaker Quentin Tarantino, 61, placed part of the blame for the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on Alec Baldwin, 66. In 2021, while filming a scene for “Rust”, the actor pulled the trigger and the gun fired a real bullet.

In conversation with Bill Maher for an episode of the Club Random podcast last Sunday (25), Tarantino opined that 90% of the blame would have been on gunsmith Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, but that 10% of the responsibility would be on the actor for not having inspected the weapon beforehand.

In his view, it is part of the cast’s job to check the weapons to make sure there is no bullet in the barrel or other problems.

The statement comes after statements issued by the Hollywood actors’ union said that actors are not responsible for such inspections. Baldwin did not comment.

In July, Baldwin had his manslaughter trial declared void, prompting the actor to sue the Santa Fe County sheriff and prosecutor who handled the shooting on the set of “Rust.”

In 2021, Baldwin was handling a .45-caliber Colt revolver during a rehearsal at Bonanza Creek Ranch in New Mexico when the gun fired a bullet that killed director of photography Halyna Hutchins and injured the production director.

According to documents obtained by TMZ, the actor’s attorneys notified Sheriff Adan Mendoza and the district attorney’s office and instructed them to save all relevant information related to his trial, such as emails, text messages, hard drives, documents, records and materials related to the investigation.