Professional armourer Mike Tristano, who has worked with Alec Baldwin previously, has said that the actor is a cautious person and it was “not his responsibility” to ensure the prop gun would not harm anyone.
The California-based arms expert isn’t working on the set of Western flick Rust, where Director of Photography Halyna Hutchins, 42, was killed.
Baldwin reportedly shot the cinematographer in the stomach on set at Santa Fe’s Bonanza Creek Ranch with a stunt gun he believed contained only blanks and not live rounds.
The tragic incident left Director Joel Souza, 48, with injured, but he has since been released from hospital.
But Mr Tristano says he’s baffled at how such a tragedy could have occurred at the hands of the star, who was seen doubled over in tears outside the local sheriff’s office after the shooting.
On BBC Radio 5 Live Breakfast on Friday morning, he said: “Mr Baldwin, when I worked with him, was very professional, very safe. I was shocked it was him … I was like, ‘How can this be?’”
The pro armourer added that some facts about the devastating accident must not yet have been disclosed as he suggested responsibility likely rests with someone else.
He said: “There has to be circumstances here that we don’t know about yet, but whoever the armourer or person handling the guns, and handed that gun to Mr Baldwin, that’s his or her responsibility to check that gun, make sure the rounds are the proper blank rounds and set up the shot to make sure whoever is firing is safe.
(Image: Jim Weber/The New Mexican)
“That’s their responsibility, not Mr Baldwin’s, he’s an actor.”
Speaking with host Rachel Burden, Tristano went on to express further confusion about the sad incident.
The movie weapons specialist said: “I don’t know if he’s done a western before, they’re different in a lot of ways, but there’s basic safety measures on every set that are inherent to every movie set where you never point a gun, even if it’s not a firing gun, at anyone else – crew member or cast member.
“So I’m at a loss here to how it could’ve happened, and how much damage. I’ve never seen anyone killed on set.”
Referring to Brandon Lee’s death on the set of The Crow in 1993 after being shot with a prop gun loaded with improperly-made dummy rounds, he added: “Brandon Lee is a whole other story, but I’ve never seen anybody killed by a prop gun.
“People have got a powder burn or something when they were too close or the actor wasn’t on aim and some powder went off, it’s very minor, not even something you go to hospital for, but never this.”
He added: “This is unheard of.”
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
