The script supervisor for the film “Rust” filed a lawsuit Wednesday against Alec Baldwin and the movie’s other producers, saying the fatal shooting on set last month has left her depressed, afraid and worried for her future.
At a press conference in Los Angeles, script supervisor Mamie Mitchell recounted the moment Baldwin, who was also acting in the film, fired a revolver that had been given to him as a prop, killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injuring director Joel Souza on set in New Mexico.
“I’ll never forget what happened on this set of ‘Rust’ that day. I relive the shooting and the sound of the explosion and the gun over and over again,” Mitchell said through tears, explaining that she was standing near the two victims when they were shot and made the 911 call.
“I’m depressed. I don’t feel safe. I feel like at any moment anything could happen to me and to those that I care about that are standing close to me,” she continued. “I don’t have a sense of guardrails in my life to keep me safe. I’m frightened of the future. This violent tragedy has taken away the joy in my life.”
Hutchins was a new but good friend, Mitchell said, calling her “an extraordinary and rare person and future collaborator.”
The lawsuit alleges “assault, intentional infliction of emotional distress and deliberate infliction of harm” and seeks unspecified punitive and compensatory damages.
In her lawsuit, Mitchell says that Baldwin “cocked and fired the loaded gun even though the upcoming scene to be filmed did not call for the cocking and firing of a firearm.” As script supervisor, Mitchell was very familiar with the precise details of each scene and was in charge of maintaining continuity throughout the film.
She alleges that the gun was improperly handed to Baldwin by the film’s first assistant director, Dave Halls, not the armorer or prop master who is supposed to manage the handoff of firearms to actors.
Mitchell is represented by high-profile attorney Gloria Allred, who said Wednesday that what happened on set does “not constitute simple negligence on Alec Baldwin’s part or the producers of ‘Rust.’”
Instead, she continued, “Mr. Baldwin chose to play Russian roulette when he fired a gun without checking it and without having the armorer do so in his presence. His behavior and that of the producers on ‘Rust’ was reckless.”
Allred also rehashed much that has already been shared about issues on set. Members of the camera crew had quit over safety concerns and there were at least two other incidents in which weapons accidentally discharged on set.
Mitchell’s lawsuit follows one filed by the film’s chief lighting technician, Serge Svetnoy, who said he held Hutchins in his arms as she lay on the ground dying.
The Santa Fe County Sheriff’s Department is still investigating the shooting and exploring how live ammunition got on set and into the gun. No criminal charges have been filed.