Alec Baldwin to face trial over Rust film set shooting

Alec Baldwin is set to face trial over the 2021 shooting on the set of the Western film Rust.

Filed by Serge Svetnoy, who worked as the lighting technician on the film, the lawsuit alleges the Hollywood actor was negligent leading up to the shooting.

Svetnoy claims a bullet narrowly missed him, accusing Baldwin and the film's production company of violating gun safety protocols. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Maurice Leiter allowed Svetnoy's claims of negligence and intentional infliction of emotional distress, but disregarded a claim of assault.

If no settlement is reached, a civil trial date has been provisionally set for October 12.

On October 21, 2021, at the Bonanza Creek Ranch in Bonanza City, New Mexico, cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was fatally shot on the set of Rust, where bullets were were fired from a prop gun that Alec Baldwin was pointing in her direction.

The actor said he didn’t know the gun was loaded and that he didn't pull the trigger. Live bullets are also banned from film sets, with Baldwin adding that it wasn't his responsibility to check if the gun was loaded.

The film's armourer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced to 18 months in prison in April 2024.

The upcoming trial follows Baldwin's case getting dismissed in July 2024, where Baldwin's lawyers had alleged that the police and prosecutors hid bullets that could have been connected to the shooting.

Prosecutors argued the ammunition was not connected to the case and didn't match bullets found on the film set. Nonetheless, the judge ruled that they should have been shared with Baldwin's defence team regardless.

The charge was dismissed with prejudice, meaning it can't be revived once any appeals against the decision are made. That same year, Rust premiered globally.

Last February, a TLC show about Baldwin and his family following their lives after the shooting was released. Read more here.