Mickey Rourke has said it’s “terribly wrong” to blame Alec Baldwin for the shooting on the set of Rust.
Baldwin is set to be charged with involuntary manslaughter alongside the armourer of the film, following the tragic incident.
In October 2021, while filming the movie on location, Baldwin was holding a Colt .45-caliber pistol that fired a live round, killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.
The actor and the movie’s armourer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, both face the criminal charge of involuntary manslaughter relating to the death of Hutchins, prosecutors in Santa Fe, New Mexico, said on Thursday (January 19) via NPR.
Now, Rourke has taken to social media to defend Baldwin via his Instagram page, explaining his perspective on gun handling as an actor.
“Most actors don’t know anything about guns especially if they didn’t grow up around them,” Rourke began. “Alec didn’t bring the gun to the set from his house or his car. When weapons are involved on a movie set, the guns are supposed to he handled only by the ‘weapon armor’.
“In some cases the 1st AD might pass a gun to an actor, but most of the time the gun is handed to the actor directly by the ‘gun armor’. The actor then has an option of dry firing the gun him or himself to double check. No way in hell should Alec Baldwin be blamed for this unfortunate tragedy.”
Rourke added: “Why the powers to be [are] charging Baldwin with this responsibility is terribly wrong. I am sure Alec is already suffering enough over what happened. But to lay a blame on him is terribly terribly wrong.”
In November of 2022, Alec Baldwin filed a lawsuit for negligence and indemnification against a number of Rust crew members including Gutierrez-Reed, weapons and rounds supplier Seth Kenney, first assistant director David Halls and property master Sarah Zachry. All have previously denied responsibility for the fatal shooting.