Alec Baldwin has broken his silence over the fatal shooting of Halyna Hutchins on the set of Rust.
The Hollywood actor accidentally shot the 42-year-old director of photography on the film set with a prop gun, also injuring director Joel Souza, 48.
Hutchins tragically passed away on Thursday 21 October as a result of the incident.
In a video from TMZ, Baldwin spoke publicly for the first time since the accident.
The outlet stated he had been surrounded by journalists and photographers on Saturday (30 October) on a roadside in Manchester, Vermont.
With his wife, Hilaria, by his side, the 68-year-old star explained that he'd been ordered by the Santa Fe Sheriff's Department not to make any comments about the ongoing investigation.
However, he did repeat, "She was my friend," before saying: "The day I arrived in Santa Fe to start shooting I took her to dinner with Joel, the director."
Although Hilaria - who was filming the interaction on her phone - attempted to intervene, the grief-stricken actor continued: "We were a very, very well oiled crew shooting a film together and then this horrible event happened.
"I've been told multiple times, 'Don't make any comments about the ongoing investigation,' and I can't."
He later added: "There are incidental accidents on film sets from time to time, but nothing like this."
When questioned about Hutchins' husband, Matthew, and their nine-year-old son, Baldwin said he is in 'constant contact' with the family who are 'in shock'.
"We are in constant contact with him because we are very worried about his family and his kid," he stated.
"And, as I said, we're eagerly awaiting for the Sheriff's department to tell us what the investigation has yielded."
Baldwin explained that he couldn't answer whether or not he would ever work on another film set that involved firearms like those used on the set of Rust, the Western film Baldwin had been producing and starring in.
"I do know that an ongoing effort to limit the use of firearms on film sets is something I'm extremely interested in," he said.
"But remember, something that I think is important and that is 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."
He continued: "So what has to happen now is, we have to realise that when it does go wrong, and if this horrible catastrophic thing [occurs], some new measures have to take place," adding the potential to use rubber guns or plastic guns.
"That's not for me to decide," Baldwin stated. "It's urgent that you understand 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 favour of and I will cooperate with that in any way that I can."
The investigation into the incident is ongoing and no charges have been filed at the time of writing.
Elsewhere, a petition has since been launched to ban real firearms on set as a result of Hutchins' death.
Words: Daisy Phillipson
Featured Image Credit: Twitter/Fox News
Topics: Police, Investigation
