Alec Baldwin accidentally shoots woman dead on set

Kilgore

RobDavies said:

Brian Cox (The actor version, rather than scientist/member of D:Ream) was being interviewed on BBC Breakfast this morning and mentioned that he had a theory regarding the incident, but couldn't say it on live TV.

Deliberate sabotage by someone with an axe to grind?

Well it's terribly tragic but it does sound like an episode of Columbo.

Haych

RobDavies said:

Brian Cox (The actor version, rather than scientist/member of D:Ream) was being interviewed on BBC Breakfast this morning and mentioned that he had a theory regarding the incident, but couldn't say it on live TV.

Deliberate sabotage by someone with an axe to grind?

Sounds like an episode of Columbo I once saw, or was it Murder She Wrote?

A similar thing crossed my mind but not sure how plausible it is, how sure can you be that your intended target will be shot? 

Unless your plan is just to screw up Alec Baldwin for some reason. 

VimFuego

Haych said:

RobDavies said:

Brian Cox (The actor version, rather than scientist/member of D:Ream) was being interviewed on BBC Breakfast this morning and mentioned that he had a theory regarding the incident, but couldn't say it on live TV.

Deliberate sabotage by someone with an axe to grind?

Sounds like an episode of Columbo I once saw, or was it Murder She Wrote?

A similar thing crossed my mind but not sure how plausible it is, how sure can you be that your intended target will be shot? 

Unless your plan is just to screw up Alec Baldwin for some reason. 

still a lot of things that could go wrong, e.g. you could never be sure that the gun wouldn't get checked.

Sassafras

The old 'prop gun switched for a real one' is almost a staple of classic crime writers.
i suppose you could say Alec Baldwin, as an executive producer could be a target for a disgruntled employee but as Captain Mainwaring would say "I think you're getting into the realms of fantasy.

Offset

Sassafras said:

The old 'prop gun switched for a real one' is almost a staple of classic crime writers.
i suppose you could say Alec Baldwin, as an executive producer could be a target for a disgruntled employee but as Captain Mainwaring would say "I think you're getting into the realms of fantasy.

...closely followed by "...you stupid boy..."

I think that's what Brian Cox meant though.  Some of the details coming out sound very peculiar.

SPECTRUM001

Haych said:

RobDavies said:

Brian Cox (The actor version, rather than scientist/member of D:Ream) was being interviewed on BBC Breakfast this morning and mentioned that he had a theory regarding the incident, but couldn't say it on live TV.

Deliberate sabotage by someone with an axe to grind?

Sounds like an episode of Columbo I once saw, or was it Murder She Wrote?

A similar thing crossed my mind but not sure how plausible it is, how sure can you be that your intended target will be shot? 

Unless your plan is just to screw up Alec Baldwin for some reason. 

Hugh Grant - he still hasn’t forgiven Alec Baldwin for asking him to take out the trash in Notting Hill.

tanihhiavlt

Haych said:

News this morning suggests it was a live round (although from reading between the lines that's yet to be conclusively confirmed) and at least two other people handled the weapon before it was given to Alec.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-59068976

we've all been there

Now Smedley, this gun contains the live round used to shoot the target - on the handle I've drawn a circle with a plus in it to represent the target.
This second identical gun has blank rounds for the actors to point at one another - so I've drawn a circle with a cross in it on the handle to indicate it's not the one for the targets and safe for the actors to point at one another.

Plus for target, cross for actors - it's very simple, try not to mess it up this time.

Mellish

I've had an awful feeling about this for a while: that desperately tragic as it is, no-one will be held responsible. I hope I'm wildly wrong

Sassafras

Offset said:

Sassafras said:

The old 'prop gun switched for a real one' is almost a staple of classic crime writers.
i suppose you could say Alec Baldwin, as an executive producer could be a target for a disgruntled employee but as Captain Mainwaring would say "I think you're getting into the realms of fantasy.

...closely followed by "...you stupid boy..."

I think that's what Brian Cox meant though.  Some of the details coming out sound very peculiar.

If true, it's murder or at the very least, manslaughter.

HAL9000

Sassafras said:

Offset said:

Sassafras said:

The old 'prop gun switched for a real one' is almost a staple of classic crime writers.
i suppose you could say Alec Baldwin, as an executive producer could be a target for a disgruntled employee but as Captain Mainwaring would say "I think you're getting into the realms of fantasy.

...closely followed by "...you stupid boy..."

I think that's what Brian Cox meant though.  Some of the details coming out sound very peculiar.

If true, it's murder or at the very least, manslaughter.

I suspect there’s a small number of right-wing nutjobs who would like to bring Baldwin down for his portrayal of Trump on Saturday Night Live. Whether they would come up with this kind of stunt is pretty questionable but certainly not beyond the bounds of possibility.

maw4neu

One glaring question . . ." Why was live ammunition on a film set "  . . . The difference between a live round and a blank is obvious . . a live round has a projectile, the bullet . . . a blank doesnt,  it just consists of the case complete with primer cap & propellant or powder . .

I just cant understand why anyone tasked with ensuring that the guns used on set were  "fit" for purpose, would load a live round into the magazine.  . . The finger of blame points at just one person you would think . . . That is unless someone else popped a live round into the gun after it was sanctioned by the Armourer . . .  

Haych

HAL9000 said:

I suspect there’s a small number of right-wing nutjobs who would like to bring Baldwin down for his portrayal of Trump on Saturday Night Live. Whether they would come up with this kind of stunt is pretty questionable but certainly not beyond the bounds of possibility.

That’s quite a good point and quite plausible, not thought of that before. 

maw4neu said:

One glaring question . . ." Why was live ammunition on a film set "  . . . The difference between a live round and a blank is obvious . . a live round has a projectile, the bullet . . . a blank doesnt,  it just consists of the case complete with primer cap & propellant or powder . .

I just cant understand why anyone tasked with ensuring that the guns used on set were  "fit" for purpose, would load a live round into the magazine.  . . The finger of blame points at just one person you would think . . . That is unless someone else popped a live round into the gun after it was sanctioned by the Armourer . . .  

Apparently, the crew were using the guns for target practise between shoots according to some reports I’ve read. 

That really is poor if it’s true. 

HAL9000

maw4neu said:

...The difference between a live round and a blank is obvious...

In a revolver (which I understand that the gun in question was), it’s possible that there could have been a mix of live and blank ammunition. A cursory check could have missed checking every chamber. Absolutely not an excuse but it’s easy to see how this could have happened.

goldtop

Using the same gun to shoot at cans/bottles out in the desert that you later use in a film is ... beyond stupidity. There's no military-derived gun-handling procedure that can overcome the SNAFU rule. And you can't lay any of this on the actor - imagine if this had been a kid (just seen The Wire episode where Omar is shot).

VimFuego

HAL9000 said:

maw4neu said:

...The difference between a live round and a blank is obvious...

In a revolver (which I understand that the gun in question was), it’s possible that there could have been a mix of live and blank ammunition. A cursory check could have missed checking every chamber. Absolutely not an excuse but it’s easy to see how this could have happened.

it's basic range safety to never take a loaded weapon from the range, it should always be unloaded before leaving the firing line. Obviously, this is military standards, presumably they adhered to a somewhat more slack safety regime.

Handsome_Chris

I believe that before filming a gun related scene, actors and relevant film staff have to get in a line in front of a recognised action movies star eg Arnold Schwarzenegger and say, "Mr Schwarzenegger, I have no live rounds , empty cases, pyrotechnics or parts thereof within my possession, Sir."  

I believe that it's a union thing.

Sassafras

Sounds like the whole production was in chaos.

Simonh

surely as an executive producer Baldwin has some form of culpability in that?

Handsome_Chris

Simonh said:

surely as an executive producer Baldwin has some form of culpability in that?

You're probably right.  If only the production team had bothered to employ some sort of professional weapons expert...

Simonh

as a company director if I hire a H&S guy and he fails to do his job properly and that results in someone getting killed or injured I would still be responsible - and liable for jail time as a result of that accident. I don't see why it would be any different on a movie set.

it was his/the production companies responsibility to ensure the people they hired were up to the job AND did it correctly.