Alec Baldwin Considered Retirement, Feared for His Safety From Trump Supporters After 'Rust' Shooting
Alec Baldwin thought about calling it quits in Hollywood following the fatal Rust shooting in October 2021. He also feared for his safety from former President Donald Trump's supporters.
The embattled 64-year-old actor opened up about those subjects in an extensive CNN interview, telling the news organization that he leaned heavily on his wife, Hilaria, for support amid the fallout from the fatal shooting that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injured director Joel Souza.
Baldwin said since the shooting, he's lost five jobs. Most recently, the actor said he got a call and was informed he was no longer wanted for a role due to his role in the Rust shooting.
"I got fired from another job yesterday," he told CNN. "There I was all set to go to a movie, jump on a plane ... I've been talking with these guys for months and they told me yesterday we don't want to do the film with you because of this."
Alec Baldwin’s Attorney Defends Actor Amid Newly Released Police Footage From 'Rust' Set Accident
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Alec Baldwin’s Attorney Defends Actor Amid Newly Released Police Footage From 'Rust' Set Accident
The stress, Baldwin said, was compounded as he feared for his safety after Trump publicly said he thought Baldwin killed Hutchins on purpose. The torment that followed from Trump supporters took "years off my life," he said.
"There is just this torrent of people attacking me who don't know the facts," he said.
During a recent interview on The Chris Cuomo Project podcast, Baldwin addressed Trump's remarks and how the actor being ensnared in a fatal shooting probe has been met with glee from the former president's supporters.
"This was something that was to the delight of people who hate my guts politically," Baldwin told Cuomo. "Trump went on TV and said he thinks I did it on purpose. 'I wouldn't rule it out,' [Trump] said. His son made T-shirts that they sold on a website," added Baldwin, referring to T-shirts emblazoned on the front in bold letters: "GUNS DON'T KILL PEOPLE ALEC BALDWIN KILLS PEOPLE."
Alec Baldwin Says 'Rust' Lawsuit Litigants Are Suing ’People They Think Have Big Pockets'
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Alec Baldwin Says 'Rust' Lawsuit Litigants Are Suing ’People They Think Have Big Pockets'
Through it all, Baldwin says he's relied on his wife's support.
"If I didn’t have my wife, I don’t know where I would be right now … If I didn’t have her, I probably would have quit, retired, gone off, you know sold everything I owned, got a house in the middle of nowhere and just you know did find something else to do, sell real estate," he said.
Baldwin's latest interview comes on the heels of an FBI forensic report surfacing last week in which the agency said its accidental discharge testing determined the gun used in the shooting couldn't have gone off without the trigger being pulled. Baldwin has previously denied he pulled the trigger, and he doubled down in his Cuomo interview.
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