Mamie Mitchell, the script supervisor on “Rust” who was the individual to call 911 after the film’s deadly shooting, has sued Alec Baldwin and the producers on the film, saying that Baldwin bares responsibility for not checking the gun and that cost-cutting measures on the film endangered the crew members.
Her lawsuit, filed by her attorney Gloria Allred in L.A. Superior Court on Wednesday ahead of Allred’s press conference and obtained by TheWrap, is the second such complaint after gaffer Serge Svetnoy also sued the production. She’s accusing the production of assault, intentional infliction of emotional distress and deliberate infliction of harm, and the suit also names armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, assistant director Dave Halls and others as defendants.
Mitchell in the lawsuit also blames Baldwin, who she describes as an industry “veteran,” for not checking whether the gun was loaded, adding that there was limited plexiglass protection within the church set on the film, and crew members were not notified of an option to view the scene on monitors from outside the church away from the action.
“Alec Baldwin should have assumed that the gun in question was loaded unless and until it was demonstrated to him or checked by him that it was not loaded,” the lawsuit reads. “He had no right to rely upon some alleged statement by the Assistant Director that it was a ‘cold gun.’ Mr. Baldwin cannot hide behind the Assistant Director to attempt to excuse the fact that he did not check the gun himself.”
Mitchell claims that the cost-cutting measures on the film endangered the lives of the crew members. And in a new detail, Mitchell goes as far as to say that the script never called for the gun to be discharged in that moment and at no time was she advised that a gun would be discharged. The suit describes three different shots, including close ups of Baldwin’s eyes, a bloodstain on his shoulder and a shot of his torso as he reached for the holster.
“There was nothing in the script about the gun being discharged by Defendant Baldwin or by any other person,” the suit continues.
Representatives for Baldwin and the producers on “Rust” did not immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for comment.
“I will never forget what happened on the set of ‘Rust’ that day. I relive the shooting and sound of the explosion from the gun over and over again. I am depressed. I don’t feel safe,” Mitchell said in part in a statement. “I’m frightened of the future. This violent tragedy has taken away the Joy in my life. I have also lost a new friend who was an extraordinary and rare person and future collaborator. Halyna was a woman who spoke the same language of film as I did. I have been robbed of my new friend. I am very sad and heartbroken for her son and husband, her sister and family and all of her friends who are suffering this preventable and unimaginable loss.”
Allred said in a statement that “the events that led to the shooting by Mr. Baldwin of a loaded gun do not constitute simple negligence.”
“Instead, in our opinion, Mr. Baldwin chose to play Russian Roulette when he fired a gun without checking it and without having the Armorer do so in his presence,” Allred said. “His behavior and that of the producers on ‘Rust’ was reckless. The fact that live ammunition was allowed on a movie set, that guns and ammunition were left unattended on a cart and allowed to be handled by those who had no business handling them, the fact that safety bulletins were not promulgated or ignored makes this a case where injury or death was much more than just a possibility; it was a likely result.”
Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was killed Oct. 21 and director Joel Souza was injured when a gun held by Baldwin discharged containing a “live round,” as authorities have previously said. Baldwin was handed the firearm after being told it was a “cold gun.” A criminal investigation is still ongoing and no charges have been filed.
Mitchell, in a 911 dispatch call, could be heard on the day of the shooting frantically telling police, “We were rehearsing and it went off … we’ve had two people accidentally shot by a prop gun; we need help immediately.”
“This (expletive) AD that yelled at me at lunch – asking about revisions, this mother (expletive) – he’s supposed to check the guns, he’s responsible for what happens on the set,” Mitchell said in the call. “We were rehearsing and it went off and I ran out, we all ran out.”