'Rust' Director Joel Souza Speaks Out on Shooting and Where He Stands with Alec Baldwin Now

Souza says the shooting "ruined me," recalling being hit by saying, "It's just like everything went tingly and numb but hurt like hell all at once."

Rust director Joel Souza has broken his silence regarding the shooting that occurred on New Mexico set of the Alec Baldwin film, which claimed the life of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.

While speaking to Vanity Fair , Souza recalled the incident -- in which he was also shot -- and his decision to continue the film.

"It's bizarre to have been shot," Souza said. "And then, who was holding the gun? That's bizarre. I had this weird thought, like, 'God, I remember watching The Hunt for Red October in the movie theater when I was a kid. It's like your older self whispers to your younger self, 'Hey, that guy…someday...'"

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"When I tell someone it ruined me, I don't mean in the sense that people might generally think," Souza told the publication. "I don't mean that it put my career in ruins. I mean, internally, the person I was just went away. That stopped."

When describing the tragedy, Souza said the bullet "missed my lung by this much. It stopped about that far away from my spine, fortunately. It was bulging out into the skin, so it created a big bump."

He was standing behind Hutchins when the gun went off.

"The whole right side of my body went numb, completely numb, but it also hurt excruciatingly at the same time, if that makes sense," he continued. "It's just like everything went tingly and numb but hurt like hell all at once. And I staggered back and was either on my knees or on my ass -- and just ... yelling. I don't even know what the hell I was yelling."

"My initial thought was that I was very angry. I was furious at that moment. I remember looking up and they were lowering Halyna to sit in front of me, and there was blood coming through her white shirt," he continued.

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As for Baldwin, who was holding the gun went it went off, he said, "We're not friends. We're not enemies. There's no relationship."

Prosecutors initially charged Baldwin with involuntary manslaughter in January 2023, before they dropped the case three months later. They re-filed the case once again in January, but the case was dismissed in July without prejudice, meaning he cannot be charged with involuntary manslaughter again. He has continuously claimed that he did not pull the trigger.

As for whether Souza thought justice was served, he said, "I don’t know, and I don't know what that even is anymore -- I'll be very honest with you about that. No one feels good about someone going to jail. If you feel good about that, take a hard look in the mirror."

The film's armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, was sentenced to 18 months in prison after she was convicted of involuntary manslaughter.

Speaking about why he decided to finish the movie, Souza said he did so in part because he knew "it would financially benefit Halyna's family, which is very important to me." He added, "And I know this can sound trite for people who aren't creative, but her last work matters. People seeing her last work matters."

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