American actor Alec Baldwin announced on Wednesday October 5 that he had reached an agreement with the family of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, whom he had killed in October 2021 while handling a revolver during the filming of the western "Rust".

In an Instagram post, the comedian said he was "grateful to all those who have contributed to the resolution of this tragic and painful case".

Production on the film will resume in January 2023, according to a separate statement obtained by AFP.

The agreement, the amount of which has not been disclosed and has yet to be validated by a judge, puts an end to the civil lawsuits brought by the family of Halyna Hutchins against Alec Baldwin.

However, an investigation remains ongoing and may lead to possible criminal prosecution, as the New Mexico Attorney General recalled on Wednesday.

"Terrible accident"

"I have no desire to launch recriminations or to point out culprits (either the producers or Alec Baldwin)", commented the husband of the director of photography, Matthew Hutchins, quoted in the press release of the production of the film.

"We are all convinced that Halyna's death resulted from a terrible accident."

Filming is due to resume in January 2023, "with all the main protagonists," he says, adding that he will be the executive producer.

On October 21, 2021, the filming of this western on a ranch in Santa Fe (New Mexico) had turned tragic when Alec Baldwin had activated a weapon supposed to contain only blank bullets but whose very real projectile had fatally injured Halyna Hutchins, 42 years old.

"Bittersweet"

The shooting also injured the director of the film, Joel Souza, who welcomed Wednesday the upcoming resumption of filming.

"While it's obviously bittersweet, I'm glad that together we're now finishing what Halyna and I started. All of my efforts on this film will be dedicated to bringing Halyna's memory to the limelight," he explained, quoted in the production press release.

The filming accident, in a country regularly bereaved by firearms, had a very strong impact, beyond the American borders.

The news item had led Hollywood studios to reflect on the rules and conditions for making films.

The police investigation, the conclusions of which have not yet been made public, focused in particular on determining how live ammunition could have been found on the set, which is in theory strictly prohibited, precisely to avoid accidents. .

Alec Baldwin had recently pointed the finger at the gunsmith hired for the film, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, while ensuring that he did not want to "condemn" her, and had also mentioned the responsibility of assistant director Dave Halls, who handed over the weapon shortly before the shooting.

With AFP

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