Rust co-star Jensen Ackles has shared a touching tribute to the late cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, who died in a tragic prop gun accident last week on the set of the independent Western film. Director Joel Souza was also injured in the incident involving lead actor Alec Baldwin, though was later released from the hospital. The accident is currently under investigation by the Santa Fe Police Department, where production had been underway on the movie.
In a post shared to his Instagram account, Ackles penned a brief tribute alongside a slideshow of photos of Hutchins on the set of Rust, while also lauding her life and her accomplishments, and also shared a set of links people can go to in order to provide some support to the late cinematographer's family in the wake of her tragic passing.
"This has been a tragedy of epic proportions that we are all still processing," Ackles wrote, adding that Hutchins "was an inspiration" and that they had shared a meaningful moment on-set days before her passing:
"Earlier last week I felt compelled to tell Halyna just how awesome I thought she was. I told her how incredible I thought her camera shots were and just how exciting it was to watch her and her team work. Truly. She laughed and said thank you and gave me a hug. I’ll forever be thankful we had that moment. She had a spunk and passion that infected the entire crew from the top down."
The American Film Institute has established the Halyna Hutchins Memorial Scholarship Fund, which will help fund the education of female cinematography students at the AFI Conservatory. "We pledge to see that Halyna Hutchins will live on in the spirit of all who strive to see their dreams realized in stories well told," the AFI said. A GoFundMe page has also been set up by the ICG Local 600 in Hutchins' name. The page has been live for only a short time, but has already exceeded its original $10,000 goal to raise $203,789 for her grieving husband and young son.
Production of Rust is on an indefinite hiatus pending a full investigation of the movie set and the events that led up to the shooting which took Hutchins' life, which Baldwin is fully cooperating with. After the investigation is complete, it's not yet known when or if production will resume.