On October 21, 2021, actor Alec Baldwin shot cinematographer Halyna Hutchins to death on the set of his movie Rust. Baldwin immediately went into damage control mode with a heartrending statement about how devastated he was. I can only imagine how he must be feeling after his tirades over the years against gun owners in general and the NRA in particular.

Most of the people Baldwin rants against for exercising their Second Amendment privilege have never shot another human being. I’m sure Baldwin is feeling very bad about killing Halyna. I’m equally sure that, if the scene he was rehearsing had called for him to put a gun to his head and pull the trigger, he wouldn’t have taken anybody’s word for it that the gun was empty.

Baldwin certainly looked devastated in the pictures immediately following the tragedy. There are other pictures, pictures of him with his wife Hilaria and their six children dressed up for Halloween. The kids look adorable and very, very happy.

I am in no way suggesting that they should have been deprived of their holiday with their parents. Halyna Hutchins’ death should not fall on these children. What I am thinking about is the incredible tastelessness of Baldwin parading his happy family while Halyna’s son, Andros, is struggling to come to grips with his mother’s death.

According to his father, Andros was incredibly close to his mother. The nine-year-old fell completely silent for two days after being told that his mother was gone. There was no happy Halloween for Andros, no silly costumes and candy and fun pictures. His father has managed to get a few words out of him, but that child is going through hell.

Meanwhile, Baldwin has spoken of how difficult his life has become since he killed his cinematographer. He is cooperating with the police investigation, but he is also trying to control the narrative of the case. He can’t just sit back and be quiet when there are roadside interviews to be given, and angry social media posts from fellow crew members defending him to be shared.

Baldwin will most likely survive this crisis and go on to make other movies and raise his children, all while decrying the guns that he has made a very handsome living from. I can only hope that Halyna Hutchins’ family, especially her little boy Andros, will recover in some measure from their loss.

Pandra Selivanov is the author of The Pardon, a story of forgiveness based on the thief on the cross in the Bible.

Image: Alec Baldwin (edited in befunky). YouTube screen grab.

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