Alec Baldwin criticized by mom of 'Rust' shooting victim over movie premiere

The mother of Halyna Hutchins, the cinematographer killed in a shooting during the filming of Alec Baldwin's Western film "Rust," is protesting the movie's premiere this week.

"It was always my hope to meet my daughter in Poland to watch her work come alive on screen. Unfortunately, that was ripped away from me when Alec Baldwin discharged his gun and killed my daughter," Hutchins' mother, Olga Solovey, said in a statement Tuesday.

"Alec Baldwin continues to increase my pain with his refusal to apologize to me and his refusal to take responsibility for her death. Instead, he seeks to unjustly profit from his killing of my daughter," Solovey continued. "That is the reason why I refuse to attend the festival for the promotion of 'Rust,' especially now when there is still no justice for my daughter."

Solovey's attorneys, Gloria Allred and co-counsel John C. Carpenter and Carlos A. Hernandez, issued their own statement decrying the decision to present the film to the public.

"Alec Baldwin has disrespected Halyna's mother, father and sister. Even though Mr. Baldwin discharged the gun that killed Halyna, he has never called them to apologize," the statement read. "Even worse, he argued, through his attorneys, that Halyna was emotionally distant from her family in Ukraine. That is false, hurtful and insulting. Further, the decision not to even call the family to say he is sorry is cruel and dishonors Halyna and her memory."

"Now, a decision has been made to promote 'Rust' to buyers in order to make a profit for Alec Baldwin and others that had a role in Halyna’s death," the statement continued. "Olga, (Hutchins' father) Anatolii and (Hutchins' sister) Svetlana will not agree with this plan to exploit Halyna’s death."

'Rust' representative: 'Disrespectful' to claim producers are profiting from film

In response to Solovey and Allred's statements, a representative for Rust Movie Productions told USA TODAY that Allred's "misrepresentation of both the Camerimage festival and any profit motivation is disappointing. The decision to complete 'Rust' was made with the full support of Halyna’s family."

In 2022, Baldwin and the film's production company reached a settlement in a lawsuit brought by Hutchins' husband, Matthew Hutchins, and the couple's son. Matthew Hutchins was given the title of executive producer in the movie as part of the settlement terms.

The production representative's statement continued: "The Camerimage festival celebrates the artistry of cinematographers; it is not a festival for buyers. None of the producers of Rust stand to benefit financially from the film. The suggestion that those involved in completing Halyna Hutchins’ film were motivated by profit is disrespectful to those who worked tirelessly to honor her legacy.”

Representatives for Baldwin did not respond to a request for comment. USA TODAY has also reached out to a representative for the film festival.

Scene Alec Baldwin was rehearsing when his gun fired isn't in the film

The closing credits for the film begin with the words "for Halyna," Variety and Deadline report. The tribute is followed by the quote: "What can we do to make this better?" which director Joel Souza said Hutchins often asked, per Variety.

"I'm excited that people will get to see Halyna's work, you know; I hope they appreciate her work," director Joel Souza told Reuters at the screening. "It wasn't an easy decision by any means, but it became important to me and important to her husband that people see her final work."

Souza hoped the film's release would mean people learned more about Hutchins than simply what had happened to her and would get to "see the world through her eyes."

A church scene they were working on when Hutchins was shot is not in the film, he said: "We were never going to finish that. … I changed the script and so I wiped that out of it."

When is the 'Rust' movie premiere?

"Rust" premiered Wednesday at Poland's Camerimage film festival three years after Baldwin's prop gun discharged during rehearsals, killing 42-year-old Hutchins and wounding Souza.

Wednesday's screening was followed by a panel discussion with Souza, cinematographer Bianca Cline and Hutchins' mentor, Stephen Lighthill.

"In the panel, following the screening of 'Rust,' the filmmakers will discuss events surrounding the film, offering insight into continuing production after Halyna's death," the festival said in a statement last month. "Maintaining Hutchins' artistic vision, as tremendously challenging as it was for the entire crew, was really important to the filmmakers, hoping to fulfil their duty to complete her work."

Festival director Marek Zydowicz described the screening and panel discussion as a "special opportunity to remember" Hutchins.

According to the film festival's synopsis for "Rust," the film follows a 13-year-old named Lucas Hollister, who is orphaned along with his younger brother. The teen is sentenced to death by hanging after accidentally shooting and killing a neighboring rancher while chasing off a wolf on his family's "dying" farm.

Alec Baldwin's legal battle with Halyna Hutchins' family continues

In July, Baldwin's involuntary manslaughter charge was dismissed on the grounds that prosecutors and law enforcement withheld evidence that might be favorable to the actor's defense. The film's armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in March. She has appealed her 18-month prison sentence.

Baldwin is still embroiled in a legal battle with Hutchins' family and script supervisor Mamie Mitchell, who filed a civil lawsuit against the actor in June. According to Allred, Baldwin's lawyers have filed a motion asking for a pause on the case; Allred plans to oppose the move.

Contributing: Brendan Morrow, Anna Kaufman; Alexandra Hudson, Reuters

(This story has been updated to add new information and a photo.)

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Alec Baldwin criticized by Halyna Hutchins' mom over 'Rust' premiere