Mother of ‘Rust’ cinematographer refuses to attend premiere in Poland
Just over three years ago, Halyna Hutchins, a Ukrainian cinematographer, was accidentally killed after she was shot on the set of Rust. Alec Baldwin fired the shot with a gun being used as a prop, which also injured the director, Joel Souza.
Hutchins tragically passed away at a hospital that day. Now, the film is set for its premiere, having been completed with a new cinematographer, Bianca Cline. However, Hutchins’ mother, Olga Solovey, has refused to attend the event despite claims that the premiere will honour the memory of the late director of photography.
Solevey has claimed that she has received no apology from Baldwin, revealing in a statement: “Alec Baldwin continues to increase my pain with his refusal to apologise to me and his refusal to take responsibility for her death.”
She added, “Instead, he seeks to unjustly profit from his killing of my daughter. That is the reason why I refuse to attend the festival for the promotion of Rust, especially now when there is still no justice for my daughter.”
Rust will be screened at Poland’s Camerimage festival on November 20th, although Baldwin has not been invited to attend. Still, Solovey is adamant that she will not be there, even though “it was always my hope to meet my daughter in Poland to watch her work come alive on screen.”
What happened in Alec Baldwin’s manslaughter trial?
As soon as the tragic incident occurred, Baldwin stated that he didn’t know the gun was loaded. He also claimed that he did not pull the trigger. Still, he was charged with one count of manslaughter alongside the film’s armourer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed. The latter was found guilty, while Baldwin, who pleaded not guilty, had his charges dismissed with prejudice. Additionally, the first assistant director, David Halls, was convicted of negligent use of a deadly weapon.
Thus, due to the fact that Baldwin hasn’t been punished, Solovey feels as though there has been no proper justice for her daughter. Solovey’s lawyer, Gloria Allred, said in a statement, “Even though Mr Baldwin discharged the gun that killed Halyna, he has never called them to apologise.”
“Even worse, he argued, through his attorneys, that Halyna was emotionally distant from her family in Ukraine. That is false, hurtful and insulting,” Allred added. “Further, the decision not to even call the family to say he is sorry is cruel and dishonours Halyna and her memory. Now, a decision has been made to promote Rust to buyers in order to make a profit for Alec Baldwin and others that had a role in Halyna’s death.”
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