Alec Baldwin chose to stop and speak with photographers today about the Rust shooting tragedy as he drove past them in Vermont while out with his family.
Baldwin and wife Hilaria, who was filming his interaction, pulled over to talk in Manchester, Vermont.
In the course of the four-minute conversation with the group, Baldwin claimed Hutchins “was my friend” and said he had dinner with her and the director on the first day of filming.
“A woman died,” he said. “She was my friend. She was my friend. The day I arrived in Santa Fe to start shooting, I took her to dinner with Joel, the director. We were a very, very well-oiled crew shooting a film together and then this horrible event happened.”
Baldwin told photographers he had been told by the Santa Fe Sheriff’s Office “not to talk about the investigation.” He said he was “eagerly awaiting for the sheriff’s department’ to release their findings,” and said he “talks to the cops every day.”
Hilaria Baldwin interjected when a photographer stuttered Hutchins’ name, rebuking them that “You should know her name. Halyna, her name is Halyna. If you’re spending this much time waiting for us…”
Both Baldwins then said, “You should know her name.”
Baldwin said he “wouldn’t know how to characterize” his meeting with Matthew Hutchins, Halyna’s husband, and her eight-year-old son, Andros.
Several times, Alec Baldwin was interrupted by Hilaria, who reminded him, “You know what, no details.”
But at one point, Alec Baldwin took control, telling her, “Do me a favor. I’m going to answer the questions.” He then said that Matthew Hutchins was “overwhelmed with grief.” .
Baldwin also called the on-set shooting “one in a trillion,” and called for “new measures” to enforce set safety. “How many bullets have been fired in films and tv shows in the last 75 years?” he said. “This is America. Probably billions. And nearly all of them without incident.”
“It’s urgent for you to understand that I am not an expert in this field,’ he said. It’s “whatever other people” decide.
The couple then asked photographers to stop following them after they talked “out of courtesy,” and asked for cameras to be turned off.
