Sources close to the set of the film ''Rust,'' the site of the shooting accident that left cinematographer Halyna Hutchins dead and director Joel Souza wounded, told Fox News that cast members appeared "green," "immature" and "lackadaisical" while handling guns on set.
''People didn't know the rules,'' one source told the outlet.
A cameraman who quit, Lane Luper, had choice words for the armory crew in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter.
"It's fine on a [low-budget production] to have inexperienced people, but your department heads shouldn't be, or people handling firearms shouldn't be," he told the outlet.
Luper described the crew as ''three inexperienced people'' and felt that Hutchins was ''under a lot of pressure to rush.'' He suggested that nepotism may have contributed to the hiring of Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, the 24-year-old daughter of notable Hollywood armorer Thell Reed.
Gutierrez-Reed has no military experience, which many armorers do, and she was paid less than $8,000 in salary, according to Fox News.
Jason Bowles, an attorney for Gutierrez-Reed, disputed her supposed inexperience.
"Hannah was very well trained by her father, Thell, who worked with her on sets from the time she was 10 years old. … She did everything she could to ensure safety on the set," he told Fox News. "Never in a million years did Hannah think that live rounds could have been in the 'dummy' round box."
According to the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office, assistant director David Halls allegedly handed Baldwin a loaded .45-caliber revolver and told him it was safe, and that both were unaware a real bullet was inside. Gutierrez-Reed corroborated the story, and both have suggested an act of ''sabotage'' by current or prior aggrieved members of the film crew.
In The Hollywood Reporter, Luper also alleged that the film's line producer, Gabrielle Pickle, was actively threatening union camera operators.
"As we were packing our things, Gabrielle Pickle came to the camera truck. … She came straight to me, said to vacate the premises immediately, otherwise she'll call security,'' he told the outlet. ''And I said, 'As soon as we're done, we'll get out of your hair.'"
Despite Luper's claims against Pickle, authorities are focusing on the four who directly handled the gun: Baldwin, Gutierrez-Reed, Halls, and prop master Sarah Zachry.
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