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Halyna Hutchins ‘Was So Good at Her Job,’ Says Close Friend: ‘I’m Absolutely Devastated About Her Death’
Halyna Hutchins‘ friend, publicist Jane Owen, tells In Touch exclusively that she is “absolutely devastated about her death” and “so shocked” after the cinematographer was fatally shot by a prop gun fired by actor Alec Baldwin on the set of the movie Rust.
“We were good friends,” she adds. “We worked together on a low budget movie called Snowbound and at the Cannes Film Festival a few years ago, and we became good friends afterwards.”
Owen says that that last time they spoke, “she said she was really looking forward to working on Rust.”
“She was so good at her job and was definitely going to be a massive star,” Owen adds of Hutchins’ potential. “She was so, so talented, enthusiastic, young and a mommy. She was a powerhouse.”
Calling her death “such a tragedy on a human level,” Owen added that it was also “a tragedy for the industry because she would’ve been a rock star.”
“She was really well liked by everyone and I can’t think of anyone who had a bad word to say about her,” she said before adding that Hutchins “was always willing to help out.”
Hutchins’ husband, Matthew Hutchins, also spoke out about his late wife’s death on set, telling Insider, “I don’t think there are words to communicate the situation.”
“I am not going to be able to comment about the facts or the process of what we’re going through right now, but I appreciate that everyone has been very sympathetic,” he added to the publication of the accident that killed Hutchins and injured director Joel Souza, who is still undergoing treatment for his injuries.
“I think that we will need a little bit of time before we can really encapsulate her life in a way that is easy to communicate,” Matthew concluded his brief interview.
Taking to Twitter, Baldwin, 63, also issued a statement regarding the “accident,” writing , “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.”
The Emmy winner added that he was “fully cooperating with the police investigation to address how this tragedy occurred” and was “in touch” with Matthew to offer his “support to him and his family. My heart is broken for her husband, their son, and all who knew and loved Halyna.”
While authorities are still investigating the incident, which occurred around 1:50. p.m. on the Santa Fe, New Mexico, set on Thursday, October 21, the union IATSE’s Local 44 claimed that a “live single round was accidentally fired on set by the principal actor, hitting both the Director of Photography, Local 600 member Halyna Hutchins, and Director Joel Souza.”
The film’s production company, Rust Movie Productions LLC, told E! News in a statement, “The entire cast and crew has been absolutely devastated by today’s tragedy, and we send our deepest condolences to Halyna’s family and loved ones.”
“We have halted production on the film for an undetermined period of time and are fully cooperating with the Santa Fe Police Department’s investigation. We will be providing counseling services to everyone connected to the film as we work to process this awful event,” they added.
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