Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson says he will no longer use real guns on the set of his productions following the Rust shooting, where cinematographer Halyna Hutchins died after Alec Baldwin fired a prop gun.
Johnson told Variety yesterday that the incident has left him “heartbroken,” adding: “We lost a life. My heart goes out to her family and everybody on set. I’ve known Alec, too, for a very long time.”
Johnson, who has to handle firearms in Red Notice, says he will only use rubber guns on his sets, and will enforce that rule with any studio he is working with. “I can’t speak for anyone else, but I can tell you, without an absence of clarity here, that any movie that we have moving forward with Seven Bucks Productions (the production company he co-founded) — any movie, any television show, or anything we do or produce — we won’t use real guns at all,” Johnson said.
He added, “We’re going to switch over to rubber guns, and we’re going to take care of it in post,” he said. “We’re not going to worry about the dollars; we won’t worry about what it costs.”
Johnson said the movie business takes safety protocols and measures “very seriously, and these sets are safe sets, and we’re proud of that. But accidents do happen. And when something like this happens of this magnitude, [that is] this heartbreaking, I think the most prudent thing and the smartest thing to do is just pause for a second and really re-examine how you’re going to move forward and how we’re going to work together.”
An investigation into the October 21 Rust shooting, in which director Joel Souza was also wounded, is ongoing. No charges have been filed to this date.
Baldwin previously said in a statement released on social media: “There are no words to convey my shock and sadness regarding the tragic accident that took the life of Halyna Hutchins, a wife, mother and deeply admired colleague of ours.
“I’m fully cooperating with the police investigation to address how this tragedy occurred and I am in touch with her husband, offering my support to him and his family. My heart is broken for her husband, their son, and all who knew and loved Halyna.”