Alec Baldwin fatally shoots woman with prop gun on movie set

[dowie]

In this scenario though, it is unrealistic to expect the actor to carry out a thorough inspection to make sure it is safe and unloaded too. The responsibility falls on the the prop team and the individual who confirmed it was safe (when it in fact, was not).

What? Why is that unrealistic? It takes a few seconds at most and is a really basic thing to do in pretty much any other circumstance. Army recruits in phase 1 training with a reading age of 11 can manage to do this, I don't see why that would be an issue for a highly paid movie actor, especially one with decades of experience.

Actors literally go on courses where they learn stage combat, use of weapons etc.. basic weapons safety really ought to be a thing.

Hopefully this will change how it’s done and everyone who is passed a firearm will check and be seen to check it. It needs both the person receiving the firearm and the person handing it over to confirm the recipient has checked it.

Exactly, in fact, perhaps have the actor load it him/herself.

Generally it is recommended that actors handling firearms are familiar with checking them:

https://www.actorsequity.org/resources/Producers/safe-and-sanitary/safety-tips-for-use-of-firearms/

Yup, he seems to have failed to adhere to these two basic points for a start:

"Treat all guns as if they are loaded and deadly.

[...]

Never point a firearm at anyone including yourself. Always cheat the shot by aiming to the right or left of the target character. If asked to point and shoot directly at a living target, consult with the property master or armorer for the prescribed safety procedures.

It's still not clear if this was during a scene or if he's simply discharged the firearm accidentally on set, likewise there is some muddled reporting re: a live round and whether they're talking about an actual live round or if that's just a reference to some movie set terminology re: blanks too.

 

[dowie]

BBC reporting the armourer was new to the job and this was her first film.

Hmm - cutting corners with non-union people? Diversity hire?

I'd have assumed most of these armourer roles would be ex-military men etc..

there’s your killer. The armourer.

In part, I don't think that absolves Baldwin though, he's the one who fired it + he's the executive producer in charge of the whole thing too.

 

[Dis86]

..In part, I don't think that absolves Baldwin though, he's the one who fired it + he's the executive producer in charge of the whole thing too.

Executive producers aren't necessarily in charge of anything. They're often just a name attached to a film to secure funding or interest. In some cases they're a main source of funding.

 

[The Running Man]

Executive producers aren't necessarily in charge of anything. They're often just a name attached to a film to secure funding or interest. In some cases they're a main source of funding.

Legally he might be accountable though iclf he has the name as exec producer.

 

[200sols]

Say the armourer was at fault, why do they have live bullets on set anyway, is that normal? I assumed it would all be blanks.

 

[dowie]

Executive producers aren't necessarily in charge of anything. They're often just a name attached to a film to secure funding or interest. In some cases they're a main source of funding.

Yeah I get there becomes a thing where some people want a producer credit & it gets a bit ridiculous as they had minimal involvement. That doesn’t seem to be the case here though as he’s not just some random finance guy who put up a bit of cash but he’s a main actor in the production. It’s his own production company (El Dorado Pictures) that is making the movie, so it’s not just some vanity title as far as he’s concerned.

 

[Colonel_Klinck]

Hmm - cutting corners with non-union people? Diversity hire?

I'd have assumed most of these armourer roles would be ex-military men etc..

Do you have to drag "woke" into everything?

 

[Quartz]

Big question is why and what the live rounds doing at the filming set? Thought most bullet hits are CGI anyway?

I don't know about these days but in the past for objects (cars, furniture etc) they put tiny explosive charges on the target.

 

[omnomnom]

Do you have to drag "woke" into everything?

Yep, he just couldnt help himself with the "Diversity hire" shout.

 

[Delvis]

Hmm - cutting corners with non-union people? Diversity hire?

I'd have assumed most of these armourer roles would be ex-military men etc..



In part, I don't think that absolves Baldwin though, he's the one who fired it + he's the executive producer in charge of the whole thing too.

Yeah, if only women were allowed to join the army

 

[dowie]

Do you have to drag "woke" into everything?

I don't though, perhaps you're easily triggered by it. It's simply an opinion/speculation.

Yeah, if only women were allowed to join the army

Kinda missing the point a fair bit, there are generally fewer and they've generally not been in combat arms until recently (though obvs some in combat support roles etc..). Granted the actual trade of being an armourer would have been open to them in both the UK and US (AFAIK) but I've generally not seen (m)any women in that role.

I'd wager that the vast majority of armourers/firearms people and/or people training actors in the use of firearms in the movie business are men.

 

[dowie]

I'm not sure where @opstrat got that this was a female armourer working on her first film though? Do you have a link?

This report mentions a guy:

https://nypost.com/2021/10/22/repla...s-in-charge-of-alec-baldwins-deadly-prop-gun/

“OK, this ****ing [bleep] that yelled at me at lunch asking about revisions, this mother****er,” she says, apparently to someone nearby.

“Did you see him lean over my desk and yell at me? He’s supposed to check the guns. He’s responsible for what happened.”

An unidentified crew member told the LA Times that Hutchins had been advocating for safer working conditions for her team.

 

[Werewolf]

Legally he might be accountable though iclf he has the name as exec producer.

Executive producers have very very little to do with the running of the set, they're effectively money or "creative".

IE Baldwin would likely have been an executive producer because he brought with him funding*, or because he might have been involved with creating the script or characters. Effectively finance or writing.

The producer is normally the one in charge of running the production including making sure that everything from the funding is secure to the appropriate waivers, permits and safety measures are in place, but in turn will rely on the stunt co-ordinators and prop people to ensure that a stunt is deemed safe (usually in co-ordination with insurance), and in turn they rely heavily on the likes of an armourer to make sure that anything that is used to a prop weapon is safe (everything from prop clubs and knives to rubber guns to guns that can fire a cartridge).

The film industry normally has some quite strict roles associated with each title, hence why you see people get credited multiple times if they are doing work that crosses between them.

*You see this a lot with "Executive producer" credits given to people who might at most have owned the production company, or because an actor has such a prominent role in an ongoing series that if they leave the series might get cancelled.

 

[Vulcan]

I'm not sure where @opstrat got that this was a female armourer working on her first film though? Do you have a link?

This report mentions a guy:

https://nypost.com/2021/10/22/repla...s-in-charge-of-alec-baldwins-deadly-prop-gun/

The armourer was female (Hannah Gutierrez-Reed), according to many outlets. The guy you're talking about sounds like the assistant director (Dave Halls), he was apparently the person who handed Baldwin the firearm.