More than three years after an on-set shooting killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injured director Joel Souza, Rust is opening to the public. The film will be available through a limited theatrical release beginning May 2 and for digital purchase on platforms including Apple TV and Prime Video starting May 1.
Souza, who co-wrote the script and directed the film, has spoken about the decision to complete the project following the incident. “I’d been repelled by the thought of going back,” he said in an interview with The Guardian. “But now it started to appeal. And I couldn’t live with the idea of someone else doing it.”
The October 2021 shooting occurred when Alec Baldwin discharged a prop revolver that was believed to be safe. A live round was in the chamber, resulting in Hutchins’ death and Souza’s injury. Production was suspended, and the film’s future was uncertain until Hutchins’ family encouraged its completion.
Matthew Hutchins, Halyna’s widower, reached a settlement with Baldwin and the other producers and was named executive producer. Proceeds from the film’s distribution will benefit the couple’s son. Hutchins’ name appears second in the film’s credits, just after Souza, a position rarely given to a cinematographer. Bianca Cline completed the remaining cinematography work after production resumed.
Souza said returning to the project was emotionally difficult. “I was a mess going in and a mess coming out,” he said. “The crew carried me through. My family carried me through. Emotionally, I was all over the map.”
When asked about The Baldwins, the reality show following Alec Baldwin’s family during the period of his legal proceedings, Souza responded with sarcasm: “I think I was busy hitting myself in the face with a frying pan that night.”
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The production had been shaped by Souza’s insistence on hiring a woman for the cinematographer role. “I was told, ‘Women can’t shoot Westerns.’ And I thought, ‘F— you. I’m going to stick that up your ass and only look at women.’” Bianca Cline took over the role following the shutdown.
Prop armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who handled the weapon involved in the shooting, was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced to 18 months in prison. Charges against Baldwin were dismissed in December. Investigations pointed to multiple safety failures on set, with industry practices around firearms facing renewed scrutiny.
Rust is set in 1880s Wyoming and stars Baldwin as Harland Rust, a fugitive gunslinger who breaks his grandson out of jail after the boy is sentenced to hang for accidentally killing a rancher. The two flee toward Mexico while being pursued by U.S. Marshal Wood Helm, played by Josh Hopkins, and a bounty hunter named Fenton “Preacher” Lang, played by Travis Fimmel.
Patrick Scott McDermott appears as Lucas Hollister, the grandson. The cast also includes Frances Fisher, Jake Busey, Travis Hammer, Devon Werkheiser, and Chris Gann. The film runs two hours and nineteen minutes.
Souza directed and co-wrote the film with Baldwin, who also served as a producer. Rust is being released through video-on-demand services for $14.99, with pre-orders currently available. The digital release begins at 9 p.m. PT on May 1.
