The mother of Halyna Hutchins, the cinematographer killed in a shooting during the filming of Alec Baldwin‘s Western film “Rust,” is protesting the movie’s premiere this week.
“It was always my hope to meet my daughter in Poland to watch her work come alive on screen. Unfortunately, that was ripped away from me when Alec Baldwin discharged his gun and killed my daughter,” Hutchins’ mother, Olga Solovey, said in a statement Tuesday.
“Alec Baldwin continues to increase my pain with his refusal to apologize to me and his refusal to take responsibility for her death. Instead, he seeks to unjustly profit from his killing of my daughter,” Solovey continued. “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.”
Solovey’s attorney, Gloria Allred, issued her own statement decrying the decision to present the film to the public.
“Alec Baldwin has disrespected Halyna’s mother, father and sister. Even though Mr. Baldwin discharged the gun that killed Halyna, he has never called them to apologize,” Allred said. “Even worse, he argued, through his attorneys, that Halyna was emotionally distant from her family in Ukraine. That is false, hurtful and insulting. Further, the decision not to even call the family to say he is sorry is cruel and dishonors Halyna and her memory.”
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“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,” Allred continued. “Olga, (Hutchins’ father) Anatolii and (Hutchins’ sister) Svetlana will not agree with this plan to exploit Halyna’s death.”
Representatives for Baldwin did not respond to a request for comment. USA TODAY has also reached out to a representative for the film festival.
When is the ‘Rust’ premiere?
“Rust” is premiering Wednesday at Poland’s Camerimage film festival three years after Baldwin’s prop gun discharged during rehearsals, killing 42-year-old Hutchins and wounding director Joel Souza.
Wednesday’s screening will be followed by a panel discussion with Souza, cinematographer Bianca Cline and Hutchins’ mentor, Stephen Lighthill.
“In the panel, following the screening of ‘Rust,’ the filmmakers will discuss events surrounding the film, offering insight into continuing production after Halyna’s death,” the festival said in a statement last month. “Maintaining Hutchins’ artistic vision, as tremendously challenging as it was for the entire crew, was really important to the filmmakers, hoping to fulfil their duty to complete her work.”
Festival director Marek Zydowicz described the screening and panel discussion as a “special opportunity to remember” Hutchins.
According to the film festival’s synopsis for “Rust,” the film follows a 13-year-old named Lucas Hollister, who is orphaned along with his younger brother. The teen is sentenced to death by hanging after accidentally shooting and killing a neighboring rancher while chasing off a wolf on his family’s “dying” farm.
Alec Baldwin’s legal battle with Halyna Hutchins’ family continues
In July, Baldwin’s involuntary manslaughter charge was dismissed on the grounds that prosecutors and law enforcement withheld evidence that might be favorable to the actor’s defense. The film’s armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in March. She has appealed her 18-month prison sentence.
Baldwin is still embroiled in a legal battle with Hutchins’ family and script supervisor Mamie Mitchell, who filed a civil lawsuit against the actor in June. According to Allred, Baldwin’s lawyers have filed a motion asking for a pause on the case; Allred plans to oppose the move.
In 2022, Baldwin and the film’s production company reached a settlement in a lawsuit brought by Hutchins’ husband, Matthew Hutchins, and the couple’s son. As part of the settlement terms, Matthew Hutchins was given the title of executive producer in the movie.
Contributing: Brendan Morrow
This post was originally published on here
