‘Most actors don’t know anything about guns!’ Mickey Rourke DEFENDS Alec Baldwin saying ‘there is no way in hell’ he should be charged with ‘any negligence whatsoever’ for Rust shooting
- Mickey Rourke, 70, weighed in on the decision announced on Thursday to charge Alec Baldwin over the fatal October 2021 shooting on his set
- Rourke, who appeared as a guest on Baldwin’s podcast in 2016, said it was wrong to charge Baldwin over the death of camerawoman Halyna Hutchins, 42
- ‘No way in hell actor Alec Baldwin should be charged with any negligence whatsoever,’ Rourke said in an Instagram post
- He added: ‘Most actors don’t know anything about guns especially if they didn’t grow up around them’
- Baldwin, 64, has insisted he is not responsible for Hutchins’s death, saying he trusted the crew members who gave him the gun and said it was not live
Mickey Rourke on Thursday sprung to the defense of Alec Baldwin, insisting there was ‘no way in hell’ he should face charges over the on-set shooting of the Rust camerawoman.
Rourke, 70, spoke out after Baldwin, 64, was told he would be charged with involuntary manslaughter for the October 2021 shooting of Halyna Hutchins.
Baldwin, who starred in and produced Rust, was handed a prop gun and pointed it at Hutchins on set in New Mexico.
The gun went off, killing the 42-year-old and wounding director Joel Souza.
On Thursday the Santa Fe district attorney announced that both Baldwin and armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed would be charged with involuntary manslaughter – and face 18 months in prison if convicted. If the pair are found guilty of firearm enhancement, they could be jailed for up to five years.
Mickey Rourke (left) on Thursday insisted that his friend Alec Baldwin (right) should not be charged over the October 2021 shooting of camerawoman Halyna Hutchins
Halyna Hutchins, a 42-year-old married mother of a young son, died in hospital in New Mexico after the accidental shooting
Rourke, who in 2016 appeared on Baldwin’s podcast, said it was wrong to prosecute the Oscar-nominated actor.
‘I usually never put my 2 cents in about what happens on someone’s movie set,’ he wrote on Instagram.
‘It’s a terrible tragedy what happened to a cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.
‘But no way in hell actor Alec Baldwin should be charged with any negligence whatsoever.’
Baldwin insists he is not responsible for the shooting, pointing out that he trusted the firearms professionals who were employed on-set. His attorney said he expects to be cleared.
Rourke claimed it was wrong to expect Baldwin to manage the gun safety aspects of the set.
The gun from the set of Rust, which was accidentally fired, killing Hutchins
She was shot just moments after the crew entered a church set to rehearse a scene (above)
Alec Baldwin is seen on October 21, 2021, after speaking to investigators about the fatal shooting of Halyna Hutchins. Baldwin’s phone is now being sought by the team probing Hutchins’s death
A devastated Baldwin is pictured bent over outside the Santa Fe County Sheriff’s office after speaking to investigators
‘Most actors don’t know anything about guns especially if they didn’t grow up around them,’ he continued.
‘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’.
‘There’s what ‘armor’s job is on the set. To have an expert around any type of dangerous weapon.’
Rourke said actors could then either ‘dry fire the gun’ or check the barrel themselves.
He said the decision to charge Baldwin was ‘terribly wrong.’
‘I am sure Alec is already suffering enough over what happened. But to lay a blame on him is terribly terribly wrong.’
The set of Rust, at the Bonanza Creek Ranch outside of Santa Fe
Rust cinematographer Halyna Hutchins (center) died after being shot by Baldwin during a rehearsal on October 21, 2021 in New Mexico
An aerial view of the Bonanza Creek Ranch in Santa Fe, where the movie was being filmed
In a statement, Baldwin’s attorney said: ‘This decision distorts Halyna Hutchins’ tragic death and represents a terrible miscarriage of justice. Mr. Baldwin had no reason to believe there was a live bullet in the gun — or anywhere on the movie set.
‘He relied on the professionals with whom he worked, who assured him the gun did not have live rounds. We will fight these charges, and we will win.’
SAG-AFTRA, the organization representing approximately 160,000 actors and other professional entertainers, also objected to the charges.
‘The death of Halyna Hutchins is a tragedy, and all the more so because of its preventable nature. It is not a failure of duty or a criminal act on the part of any performer,’ the group said in a statement Thursday.
‘The prosecutor’s contention that an actor has a duty to ensure the functional and mechanical operation of a firearm on a production set is wrong and uninformed.
‘An actor’s job is not to be a firearms or weapons expert. Firearms are provided for their use under the guidance of multiple expert professionals directly responsible for the safe and accurate operation of that firearm.
‘In addition, the employer is always responsible for providing a safe work environment at all times, including hiring and supervising the work of professionals trained in weapons.’
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