Action star Dolph Lundgren, known for such roles as Ivan Drago in Rocky IV and King Nereus in Aquaman, recently weighed in on the Alec Baldwin shooting by asserting that firearms on movie sets are “a serious business.”
“It’s a serious business having real firearms on a film set,” Lundgren told Fox News, adding, “Usually an armorer, they’re very serious people and they’re very committed and the guns are checked.”
“Any other time I remember it happened was with Brandon Lee,” he then recalled, referencing the similar on-set shooting of Brandon Lee during filming of The Crow, wherein the son of renowned martial artist Bruce Lee was killed by an improperly crafted dummy round fired from a prop gun by his film co-star Michael Masse.
“It’s crazy,” Lundgren said of Baldwin’s fatal weapon discharge which injured director Joel Souza and killed director of photography Halyna Hutchins on the set of Rust.
Lundgren continued, “I don’t know how that happened. There should never be any live ammo around a movie set,” before explaining what he used to do when manipulating firearms on the set of the many action films he’s starred in.
“I used to do a couple dry fires into the ground before I use it,” The Expendables star explained. “There is a protocol that is pretty strict and I’m sure safety on sets is going to be even more [strict] now.”
Lundgren also revealed that he has opted to use special effects instead of blanks for all gun-related scenes in Castle Falls, an upcoming action film directed by the Hollywood veterean in which he stars alongside martial arts actor Scott Adkins.
“You can do CGI flashes and you can also animate the shells coming out of the weapon,” said Lundgren. “All the multi flashes and all the shells kicked out of the guns, that’s done on a computer.”
He added, “But some movies, I think the one [Alec] Baldwin was in was a period piece so they used revolvers or something like that. That’s probably why they opted for using blanks.”
In the wake of the tragic event that took place on the set of Rust near the end of October, Baldwin took to social media to issue a statement, 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.”
“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,” he further noted. “My heart is broken for her husband, their son, and all who knew and loved Halyna.”
Meanwhile, Rust script supervisor Mamie Mitchell recently took legal action against Alec Baldwin, filing a lawsuit for his firing of the gun “towards individuals, including [Mamie Mitchell], Ms. Hutchins, and Mr. Souza, even though protocol was not to do so.”
Further, one of Mitchell’s complaints claims that Baldwin “intentionally, without just cause or excuse, cocked and fired the loaded gun even though the upcoming scene to be filmed did not call for the cocking and firing of the firearm.”
“He had no right to rely upon some alleged statement by the Assistant Director that it was a ‘cold gun,’” the filing asserts, adding that the actor “cannot hide behind the Assistant Director [David Halls] to attempt to excuse the fact that he did not check the gun himself.”
“Halyna Hutchins was not just one of the most talented people I’ve worked with, but also a friend. I’m shocked and saddened by her death,” said Rust assistant director David Halls in a statement issued a week after the shooting. “It’s my hope that this tragedy prompts the industry to reevaluate its values and practices to ensure no one is harmed through the creative process again.”
A similar statement was issued by armourer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed’s lawyer, Jason Bowles, which read, “Hannah still, to this day, has never had an accidental discharge. The first one on this set was the prop master and the second was a stunt man after Hannah informed him his gun was hot with blanks.”
What do you make of Lundgren’s comments on Baldwin and the shooting on the set of Rust? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section down below or on social media.