Alec Baldwin 'Inconsolable' & Canceling Projects Amid Rust Shooting Tragedy

The repercussions of the Rust shooting are still being felt.

The death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins (and injury of director Joel Souza) has sent shockwaves through the film industry. As investigators sort through what happened last week, there has been an outcry over the use of dangerous firearms as props and about maintaining safety standards while filming.

Because the incident occurred on a film set, there are plenty of witnesses to attest as to why this tragedy happened — including the actual cameras. An insider told The Sun:

“The camera was facing Alec [Baldwin] who was shooting in the cameras general direction during a rehearsal scene that was being recorded. The cameras captured Alec shooting but Halyna and Joel were behind the camera so I don’t think the cameras captured them being shot.”

Of course, “cameras, lights and props were damaged” from the gunfire, and “broken glass was everywhere,” so who knows how helpful that footage will be to the investigation.

Meanwhile, the man who took the fatal shot is dealing with the fallout of his role in this unfathomable loss. According to People, the 30 Rock alum is “is canceling other projects” and hopes “to take some time to himself and re-center himself” following the horrifying situation. A source shared:

“This was pretty devastating. This is how he handles difficult times. Whenever something bad happens, in the short term, he removes himself from [the] public eye.”

Alec isn’t a scandal-free celeb, but obviously something “bad” happening to him before couldn’t possibly compare to this horrific event. It’s understandable that he would want to take a step back; we can’t imagine the process of recovery from something like this.

The People insider confirmed that the father of seven was “hysterical and absolutely inconsolable for hours” after the shooting, saying:

“Everyone knows this was an accident, but he’s absolutely devastated.”

The source went on:

“[Baldwin] is someone who really deeply cares, so he can be very hard on himself. That’s true in general, in situations nowhere near as serious as this. But in this situation, it’s a whole other level because of the loss of life involved.”

Halyna’s father has stated he doesn’t blame the 63-year-old for his daughter’s death, but some have questioned whether he bears responsibility not only as the star holding the gun but also as an executive producer on the project. Other names have also been put forward to take blame, particularly the assistant director Dave Halls, who handed the actor the weapon that day.

We don’t yet know what the consequences (legal and otherwise) for the shooting will be. The source stated: