‘She was my friend’: Baldwin breaks silence on ‘one-in-a-trillion’ set shooting, says movie had ‘well-oiled crew’

Alec Baldwin opened up about the shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins after he and his wife were confronted by press in Vermont, where they have been staying during the investigation.

“There are incidental accidents on film sets from time to time, but nothing like this. This is a one in a trillion episode,” Baldwin told gathered press on Saturday.

...how many bullets have been fired in films and TV shows in the last 75 years? This is America. How many bullets have gone off, nearly all of them without incident.

Baldwin said he is not "allowed to make any comments because it's an ongoing investigation," but was open to answering other questions, even as his wife, Hilaria Baldwin, grew visibly frustrated when one of the paparazzi could not remember Hutchins' name.

Baldwin described Halyna as a friend and said he is in “constant contact” with her husband, who is “overwhelmed with grief.” While he said he met with Hutchins' husband and son after the fatal incident, Baldwin admitted he “wouldn't know how to categorize” their meeting.

Hutchins died earlier this month after Baldwin fired a live round from a weapon while filming the movie 'Rust' in New Mexico. Hutchins and director Joel Souza were both struck. Hutchins later died from her injuries, while Souza was hospitalized, but has since been treated and released.

Reports have suggested ‘Rust’ was a production plagued by safety issues. Law enforcement has said they suspect more live rounds besides the one fired were present on the set, and the film’s armorer, 24-year-old Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, has blamed producers for a rushed schedule that did not give proper time for safety training. Baldwin is one of the movie’s producers and insisted over the weekend it was a “well-oiled crew.”

Four people, including Baldwin, handled the gun that ended up being fired, and law enforcement said they have not ruled out charges in relation to the fatal shooting.

Asked about safety on film sets and whether he would ever work on another movie that involved firearms, Baldwin said that an “ongoing effort to limit the use of firearms on film sets is something I'm extremely interested in.”

I'm not an expert in this field so whatever other people decide is the best way to go in terms of protecting people's safety on film sets I'm all in favor of and I will cooperate with that in any way that I can.

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