After the tragic death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the Alec Baldwin western Rust, many entertainment professionals took the time to share condolences and weigh in on the accident. One of those aforementioned stars was Angelina Jolie, who has starred in multiple action films over the course of her Hollywood journey.
Angelina Jolie is no stranger to on-set weapons. Throughout her cinematic career, she has worked with prop guns on films like Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, and Those Who Wish Me Dead. So when she heard about the horrible accident on the set of Alec Baldwin’s film Rust, it’s no surprise that she had something to say about the topic. She told The Times:
I can’t imagine what these families are going through. At this moment, the grief and the tragedy of that accident is quite overwhelming. I’ve always been very careful because I’ve had to work with guns a lot. The way I’ve worked or checked when I’m directing, there are certain procedures. You have to take it very seriously.
An on-set armorer is typically responsible for ensuring the proper utilization of safety procedures, but actors are also required to handle their weapons with care. Many film sets use real guns loaded with blanks or fake ammo, but even these props can be very dangerous. In the case of the Rust shooting, the prop gun fired by Alec Baldwin was reportedly never supposed to contain ammo in the first place.
However, it is unknown whether the same "procedures" Angelina Jolie mentioned were ever instituted on the set of Rust. Some people were quick to blame Rust armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, whose job on set was specifically to ensure safe weapons handling. Her lack of experience was cited in support of that claim. The young armorer’s lawyers are maintaining her innocence, stating that she was hired for multiple positions on set and was subsequently too overworked.
The Rust investigation is still ongoing. Meanwhile, many people have been reaching out to the family of Halyna Hutchins, who left behind a 9-year-old son. Angelina Jolie is famous for her maternal instincts, so it’s only logical that she should empathize with a grieving family. Her six children have been the focus of her life for many years, with her career taking a slight backseat. She has only made a few films over the last five years, including Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, Come Away, and The One and Only Ivan. Angelina Jolie’s most recent films, Those Who Wish Me Dead and Marvel’s Eternals, mark a return to the action for which she first became a household name.
Angelina Jolie stars as Thena in Marvel’s Eternals, now playing in theaters.
