Alec Baldwin Opens Up about Rust Shooting

Copyright: Adam Nemser/Cover Images

Alec Baldwin feels regret, but not responsibility.

The actor and producer sat down with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos to discuss the tragic accident on the set of his film, Rust, in which he accidentally shot and killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injured director Joel Souza.

In the tearful interview, which aired on ABC Thursday night, Baldwin said the incident occurred when he was rehearsing a scene – but insisted he never pulled the trigger. He said Hutchins was directing his movements during the rehearsal. "Now, in this scene, I am going to cock the gun. I said [to Hutchins], ‘Do you want to see that?’ And she said yes. So I take the gun and I start to cock the gun. I’m not going to pull the trigger. I said, ‘Did you see that?’ [She said] 'Well, just cheat it down and tilt it down a little bit like that. And I cocked the gun and go, ‘Can you see that? Can you see that?’ And I let go of the hammer on the gun and the gun goes off."

Stephanopoulos asked, "So you never pulled the trigger?" and Baldwin responded, "No, no, no, no, no. I would never point a gun at anyone and pull a trigger at them. Never. Never. That was the training that I had. "

The attorney for Rust’s first assistant director David Halls (who is rumoured to have handed the actor the gun) backed up Baldwin’s claim that he didn’t pull the trigger. "Dave has told me since the very first day I met him that Alec did not pull that trigger," the lawyer told ABC News. "His finger was never in the trigger guard."

When asked if by Stephanopoulos if he feels guilt, Baldwin responded, "No. Someone is responsible for what happened and I can’t say who that is, but I know it’s not me."

He added, "I might have killed myself if I thought I was responsible, and I don’t say that lightly. I have dreams about this constantly now. I go through my day, and I make it through the day. Then I collapse at the end of the day. Emotionally, I collapse."

The Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office continues to investigate the accident, though Baldwin said he feels confident he will not be charged. "I've been told by people who are in the know, in terms of even inside the state, that it's highly unlikely that I would be charged with anything criminally."

Meanwhile, he told Stephanopoulos that the accident has changed the types of movies he wants to star in and produce, adding, "I can't imagine I'd ever do a movie that had a gun in it again."

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