Special prosecutors have not decided whether criminal charges will be refiled against Alec Baldwin in the fatal 2021 shooting of Rust cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, but the actor this week is trying to stop crew members from the indie Western from taking him to court.
Attorneys for Baldwin and El Dorado Pictures have filed a motion to dismiss the civil case brought in February by Rust crew members Ross Addiego, Doran Curtin and Reese Price, who accused Baldwin and the producers of “negligent and reckless conduct.” Hedging their bets, the defendants also have a motion pending to stay the whole matter until the Rust criminal trial is done and determined.
New Mexico’s First Judicial District Court has a hearing set for Wednesday on those motions, with the outcome potentially creating a significant blast radius for not just the criminal case, (from which Baldwin was dropped in April), but also for various other ongoing civil cases against Baldwin in New Mexico and California.
Baldwin has long insisted he never pulled the trigger on the 1880s prop gun that killed Hutchins and injured Rust director Joel Souza on October 21, 2021 on the Bonanza Creek Ranch set near Santa Fe, NM. Baldwin, pointing the gun at Hutchins during a rehearsal, says the gun simply went off – an assertion the FBI disagreed with in its report on the matter released last year. >>>Charges "Being Considered" |
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| Deadline Exclusives & Originals |
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Lionsgate Masks Up - Amid a rise in Covid cases in Los Angeles, Lionsgate has brought back the mask mandate for nearly half of the company’s employees at its flagship office at 2700 Colorado Ave. in Santa Monica. Implemented in response to several employees recently testing positive for Covid, it involves a mandatory mask mandate effective immediately and until further notice for the 3rd and 5th floors of the five-story building, the email said. >>> Medical Grade Face Coverings Required
Let's Make A Deal - Recent conversations in Hollywood with parties on both sides about the stand-off between the studios and the guilds have evolved into a familiar refrain. It’s not about who’s wrong or right on the subjects of AI, writer’s room staffing minimums, streaming residuals and other sticking points. It is instead this: The lack of time that has been spent in a negotiating room while people suffer, has started to feel unseemly. >>> Mike Fleming's Column
"Systemic Rot" - Bethenny Frankel’s lawyers launched a second salvo at NBCUniversal, seeking changes to working conditions for unscripted cast members there. "In the course of our investigation, we have not only confirmed the veracity of our initial allegations but have also discovered that the breadth and scope of your wrongdoing is greater than previously believed," the letter read. >>> NDA Practices Challenged |
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“It’s a mad way to make a film, and I’m not sure it’s not something I would rush into again,” director Hope Dickson Leach said of the process behind her latest feature, the Edinburgh competition title The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Leach, best known for her well-received debut, The Levelling, which debuted at Toronto in 2016, was approached by the National Theatre of Scotland during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic to create a hybrid film-theatre project that could engage audiences while health restrictions were still in place. The result was a stage production of Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic novel, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, performed live at the Leith Theatre in Edinburgh by a troupe of actors who were tracked around the venue by six cameras. The footage was mixed and edited live by Leach, who sat in an operating van outside the venue. Here, she discusses the project and why it took her a decade to return to filmmaking. >>> Read The Interview |
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Dave Bautista and Jason Momoa are teaming with Blue Beetle director Ángel Manuel Soto on The Wrecking Crew , the buddy action comedy that the actors had set up at MGM, Deadline can confirm. Bautista and Momoa were both in talks for the film, scripted by Warrior creator Jonathan Tropper, long before the SAG-AFTRA strike. Tropper’s deal was negotiated and closed, and his script submitted, prior to the WGA strike began in early May. |
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BY THE NUMBERS
240 - The number of meters above a ravine in Pakistan that a chairlift has been hanging due to a snapped cable, as six children and two adults await rescue. Millions have tuned into global media outlets for updates. |
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More News
🚨 Donald Trump said that he would head to Atlanta on Thursday to turn himself in to face charges in his most recent indictment in Georgia. The district attorney who brought the charges set a deadline of noon on Friday for the defendants in the case to voluntarily surrender. Others facing charges include Trump’s attorney, Rudy Giuliani, and his former chief of staff, Mark Meadows.
🍄 Charles Martinet, the original and longtime voice actor of Mario in the Nintendo Super Mario game series, is retiring from the role he’s held since the 1990s, Nintendo announced Monday. The actor will continue his association with the character in the capacity of what the game company calls a “Mario Ambassador.”
🌳 Hayley Atwell, David Harewood and Ben Whishaw are among more than 100 UK actors backing a proposal for a "Green Rider." Their statement outlines the terms for a series of proposals Equity claims will “empower artists” and help them add clauses to their contracts that work towards an environmental culture shift. These proposed contractual agreements between artists and producers would “improve sustainability in the UK’s TV and film industry,” according to Equity.
🎶 Once Upon a One More Time, the Broadway musical that uses Britney Spears hits to re-tell and revise various fairy tales and opened in June to mixed reviews, has announced an early closing. “The fairy-tale is coming to an end,” an Instagram post from the production read. “Final performance September 3…come party with us one more time!” |
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Trending  Oliver Anthony’s political song “Rich Men North of Richmond” has found an audience, even as many media outlets condemn its message. The red-bearded Anthony’s song has been viewed more than 21 million times on YouTube. It’s also topping many of the streaming and downloading sites.
🔻 Iranian documentary filmmaker and female rights activist Mojgan Ilanlou was arrested in Tehran on Sunday and then held for 24 hours, to be freed late Monday. Ilanlou’s detention, and six-month sentence for filmmakers Saeed Roustayi and Javad Noruzbegi, are seen as signs that Iran’s Islamic Regime is upping its efforts to smother the “Woman Life Freedom” uprising as it approaches its one-year anniversary. |
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On the Radar
Wed - First GOP debate; Ashoka premieres on Disney+; Rust hearing
Thu - Trump to turn himself in to GA officials
Sun - The Streamy Awards; National Cinema Day
Mon - Trump's first Jan. 6 hearing; U.S. Open begins at Flushing Meadows |
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Rain Delay - One day after a photo taken during Tropical Storm Hilary seemed to show Dodger Stadium afloat in a moat of water that covered the parking lot, officials posted a beautiful, dry photo of the iconic L.A. ballpark. "Dodger Stadium trending?" the post read. "We get it. It looks beautiful this morning." |
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