Entertainment
Rust cast ‘discussed Brandon Lee’s death on The Crow’ amid fears over shootout scenes
Brandon Lee also died on set due to a prop gun (Picture: Getty / Rex)
The prop gun death of Brandon Lee on the set of The Crow was discussed by actors on the set of Rust, prior to the fatal shooting of Halyna Hutchins.
Cinematographer Hutchins died from her injuries last Thursday after being shot by a prop revolver discharged by Alec Baldwin on the set of the Western movie Rust.
The 42-year-old’s death drew parallels with the death of Bruce Lee’s son Brandon, who was killed in 1993 after being shot with a prop gun during a scene.
Ian A Hudson was cast as an outlaw in Rust and his last scene in the movie, filmed on October 8, involved his character being killed in a shootout with Jensen Ackles’ character.
He told TMZ: ‘Everybody on the camera crew was protected by shields, and the camera was protected by shields. That made me question me being in front of the camera and sort of in between all that fire.
‘When the rounds were released when they shot at me, I actually did feel the blanks hitting my face and my body, and I could feel the wind from the shotgun being discharged, it was heavy, it was strong.
‘I would talk to my fellow cast members afterwards and we would all agree how intense that was, and how scary and real it was.’
Hudson could feel the wind from shotguns during his scene (Picture: Instagram)
The cast members were so unsettled that they discussed Brandon Lee’s death on set, with Hudson saying: ‘Brandon Lee having died in 1993, that conversation came up a couple times between my fellow cast members and I. You know… we’re doing this the same way they did it then, 30 years ago. You gotta double check, gotta make sure.’
Lee, 28, was filming a scene where his character in The Crow was shot when he was struck in the abdomen by an improperly made dummy round.
Prior to the scene, the gun was loaded with the cartridges with the powder charges removed, but the primers had not been, and after one of the rounds was fired, a bullet was pushed into the gun barrel and had become stuck.
When the gun, which was loaded with blank rounds for the actual scene, was fired by actor Michael Massee, who played Funboy, during filming, a blank round was fired and dislodged the bullet with almost the same force as if the round was live.
Lee underwent six hours of surgery but was pronounced dead on March 31, 1993, and his death was ruled an accident due to negligence.
Brandon Lee was fatally shot while filming The Crow (Picture: Miramax)
Hutchins’ death has sent shockwaves through the industry and raised concerns about set safety, after it emerged that the prop gun handed to Alec Baldwin by assistant director Dave Halls – who had picked up the revolver from a tray assembled by armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed – contained a live round, despite Halls declaring it was ‘cold’ (or free of ammunition).
Hudson defended Gutierrez-Reed, 24, telling TMZ: ‘Honestly, I think the armorer, having been pressed for time as much as she was, was doing a fantastic job. In fact, I even overheard Joel Souza the director praise her a couple of times for being as safe as she was and as consistent and speedy too, keeping up with the rushed schedule.’
It is unclear if he or his fellow cast members raised their concerns about the shootout scenes to senior staff, with the actor adding: ‘As a new actor I don’t want to cause trouble, [or] make an issue about things, I just want to do as well as I can and get the footage that they want. I held my tongue for a lot of it, but some of the other actors who have worked on a lot more sets than I have as principal characters… they were double and triple checking our weapons after the armorer gave them to us, whether they were cold or hot.’
Halyna Hutchins died from her injuries (Picture: Getty Images for AMC Networks)
Earlier in the week, Hudson said he felt like he had ‘literally dodged a bullet’ following the tragedy.
He wrote on Instagram: ‘This was my first principal role on a big movie. My character & his posse were outlaws. Multiple blank rounds were fired at me over multiple takes. I felt pieces of the blanks hitting my body & my face. I felt the the heavy thud of air from the shotgun blanks hit me in the chest. I’ve been reassured that this is normal one too many times. I’m heartbroken & honestly pretty freaked out, especially the more this story develops. I feel as if I literally dodged a bullet. I’m shaken, selfishly, afraid and humbled, grateful to be alive.
‘After driving countless sleepless hours to & from sets over the years, I understand 1st hand the heavy-eyelid, manic state that 90% of the crew feels every day. It’s not ok. A paycheck doesn’t justify putting our lives at risk. I know a lot of industries in the world are well overdue for an overhaul, but do we really have to continue to wait till people are dying to make a change? I’ve lost a number of friends in recent years to avoidable circumstances that our society deems “the norm.” I’m over it. I think we all are.
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‘Today’s “modern” society deserves better civil rights, healthcare & education, safer & financially stable employment, autonomy for gender, cultural and basic human needs. This tragedy could have been avoided. The crew went on strike that morning, production should have stopped. I know the broken world we live in and the lack of basic human rights is to blame. I hope my words honor the many fallen. Rest in power, Halyna.’
An investigation into Hutchins’ death is ongoing, as Santa Fe County district attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies warned that criminal charges are not off the table.
No charges have yet been filed.
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