Joel Souza, the director and screenwriter of the āRustā film, took to the stand Friday in the involuntary manslaughter trial of the filmās armorer, to testify about the moment he was shot on set.
āThere was an incredibly loud bangā unlike typical discharges on set, Souza testified. āThis was deafening.ā
Following the percussive outburst, Souza said, āIt felt like someone had taken a baseball bat to my shoulder, I remember that distinctly.ā
Souza had been standing directly behind cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, trying to get a closer look at the shot in the filmās camera.
āI distinctly remember (Hutchins) being lowered to the ground, people had her sort of on either side. I still didnāt know what had happened. Nothing made sense,ā he said. āI remember initially thinking, āHad she been startled by it?ā and then I saw the blood on her back.ā Hutchins was during the October 2021 incident.
Souza recalled the chaotic scene unfolding and the presence of armorer Hannah Guttierez Reed, āstanding there, looking distraught.ā
āI remember her saying, āIām sorry, Iām sorry Joelā and I remember somebody screaming at her and they just ushered her out,ā he recalled.
At the hospital, the filmmaker said did not understand he had been shot by a bullet.
āI knew something had got me, but they kept talking about this bullet and it just could not compute for me. I kept saying, āYou donāt understand. No, no, no, this was a movie set. Thatās not possible. You donāt get it,ā and, āItās just not possible. Itās just not possible thereās a live round.āā
Doctors then showed Souza the X-ray of his back.
āThere was a very large bullet in it.ā
has hinged on whether Gutierrez Reed, who was in charge of handling weapons on set, or Alec Baldwin and the filmās production team, are ultimately responsible for the shooting.
The New Mexico prosecutor Jason Lewis has said Gutierrez Reedās failure to properly implement safety checks led to the live bullets making their way onto set. Alternately, her defense attorneys have emphasized the filmās production team fostered a chaotic environment and Reed, just 24 years old at the time, was given an unreasonable number of responsibilities on set.
Gutierrez Reed has pleaded not guilty to involuntary manslaughter charges. Baldwin has also pleaded not guilty to manslaughter charges .
