Alec Baldwin's ABC News interview about the Rust shooting has been labeled "misguided" by the attorney representing the movie's head electrician/gaffer, Serge Svetnoy.
Last week, the actor gave an emotional tell-all interview to George Stephanopoulos about the shooting which led to the death of the film's cinematographer, Halyna Hutchins, after the prop gun being used by Baldwin misfired.
During the interview, Baldwin said that he didn't pull the trigger of the gun.
"The trigger wasn't pulled. I didn't pull the trigger. I would never point a gun at someone and pull the trigger on them, never," Baldwin said in the interview.
"So you never pulled the trigger?" Stephanopoulos reiterated.
"No, no, no, I would never point a gun at anybody and pull the trigger, never," Baldwin responded. "That was the training I had: You don't point a gun at somebody and pull the trigger."
Now, lawyer Gary A. Dordick has refuted Baldwin's claim about pulling the trigger and said he is "trying to sway public opinion."
"There are two ways to fire a gun, pull the trigger or pull the hammer back and drop it, thus Alec Baldwin has conclusively admitted he pointed the gun at Halyna Hutchins and fired the fatal shot," Dordick told Fox News.
"His prime-time show appears to have been an attempt to sway public opinion, however, I think it was clear to most who watched the show it was a poorly planned, misguided attempt for sympathy for himself," he said.
"He denied guilt and responsibility and knowledge of the many, many safety problems on the set, even though he was responsible for safety as the producer. He acted as if he were best friends with Halyna Hutchins, yet he only knew her for nine days."
Dordick continued: "When I take Mr. Baldwin's deposition in the civil case, I will play this interview on the record and cross-examine him on his statements, line by line, under oath."
Svetnoy is suing Baldwin, as well as Rust's armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed, assistant director Dave Halls and many others, for "severe emotional distress" following the tragedy.
The attorney added that Baldwin did not help his civil case by speaking about the situation on television.
"He did not help his civil case and there remains the possibility of criminal charges. Mr. Baldwin should not have spoken publicly on national television," he said.
Newsweek has contacted Baldwin's representatives for comment.
During his ABC interview, Baldwin explained how the gun went off and that he had been discussing the action of cocking a gun in a scene with Hutchins, and the demonstrated the action with the prop firearm.
"I'm holding the gun where she told me to hold it," he said, before explaining how he pulled back and released the hammer of the gun.
"I said to her, 'In this scene, I'm going to cock the gun, do you want to see that,'" Baldwin continued. He confirmed Hutchins told him to cock the gun.
"I let go of the hammer and the gun goes off. I never pulled the trigger," he said.
Baldwin added that he "would never point a gun at anyone and pull a trigger at them."
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
