Entertainment

Alec Baldwin has tweeted out a reaction to the fine issued by the New Mexico Environment Department’s Occupational Health and Safety Bureau (OHSB) to the producers of his movie Rust over the on-set shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on October 21, 2021.

Rather that issuing his own statement, the outspoken actor posted his lawyers’ official response.

“We are grateful to the New Mexico Occupational Health and Safety Bureau for investigating this matter,” the statement begins. “We appreciate the report exonerates Mr. Baldwin by making clear that he believed the gun held only dummy rounds.”

The rep continues, “Additionally, the report recognizes that Mr. Baldwin’s authority on the production was limited to approving script changes and creative casting. Mr. Baldwin had no authority over the matters that were the subject of the Bureau’s findings of violations, and we are pleased that the New Mexico officials have clarified these critical issues. We are confident that the individuals identified in the report will be held accountable for this tragedy.”

On the day in question, the firearm Baldwin was pointing at Hutchins discharged, fatally striking her, and injuring the movie’s director, Joel Souza.

Rust Movie Productions LLC was fined more than $136,000 for, according to a press release from the agency, plain indifference to the “recognized hazards associated with the use of firearms on set that resulted in a fatality, severe injury, and unsafe working conditions.”

One of those safety rules is that employees must “refrain from pointing a firearm at anyone, except after consultation with the Property Master, Armorer or other safety representative, such as the First Assistant Director.” OHSB concluded, “By failing to follow these practices, an avoidable loss of life occurred.”

Baldwin contended the movie’s first assistant director, David Halls, handed him the Colt-style pistol after declaring it “cold,” or safe to handle.

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The New Mexico Environment Department’s Occupational Health and Safety Bureau (OHSB) has fined the producers of Alec Baldwin‘s Western Rust $136,793 as a result of their investigation into the on-set shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on October 21, 2022.

The agency issued a “Willful-Serious citation,” declaring that “Rust Movie Productions, LLC management knew that firearm safety procedures were not being followed on set and demonstrated plain indifference to employee safety by failing to review work practices and take corrective action.”

Hutchins was killed and the director of the film, Joel Souza, was injured when a live round in a pistol aimed by Baldwin discharged during a rehearsal in a New Mexico church. The actor insists he was assured the firearm was “cold,” meaning safe to handle.

Investigators later found on the set a mix of live rounds, inert “dummy” rounds — which should have been loaded into the pistol — and blanks.

“Rust Movie Productions, LLC was cited for the plain indifference to the recognized hazards associated with the use of firearms on set that resulted in a fatality, severe injury, and unsafe working conditions,” the agency said in a press release. It also noted that the investigation into the shootings “encompassed 1,560 hours of staff time, 14 interviews, and review of 566 documents.”

New Mexico Environment Cabinet Secretary James Kenney said in a statement, “Our investigation found that this tragic incident never would have happened if Rust Movie Productions, LLC had followed national film industry standards for firearm safety,” and said producers demonstrated a “complete failure…to follow recognized national protocols that keep employees safe.”

In response to the OHSB report, Stefan Friedman, the attorney for Rust Movie Productions, noted, “While we appreciate OHSB’s time and effort in its investigation, we disagree with its findings and plan to appeal. Our thoughts and prayers remain with Halyna’s family.”

Jason Bowles, the attorney for Rust armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed, declared in a statement that the OHSB report found that his client “was not provided adequate time or resources to conduct her job effectively, despite her voiced concerns.” The Bowles statement further asserted that the OHSB report concluded that producers “failed to call Hannah in to perform her armorer duties and inspect the firearm right before its use in the impromptu scene with Baldwin. As we have stated before, had anyone from Production called Hannah back into the church before the scene to consult with her, this tragedy would have been prevented.

Rust Movie Productions has 15 business days to pay the OHSB penalty and provide the agency with certification of corrective action, or they can contest the citation.

Hutchins’ family filed a wrongful death suit in February against a number of parties, including Baldwin and the film’s production, alleging in part that reckless behavior and cost-cutting led to Hutchins’ death.

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(NOTE CONTENT) In dramatic testimony in a Fairfax, Virginia courtroom Wednesday, Johnny Depp testified to a litany of psychological and physical abuse he says he suffered at the hands of his ex-wife, Amber Heard.

The testimony laid out, in graphic detail, the attack Depp said he endured during at a rented home in 2015, during which he says Heard threw a large vodka bottle at him, severing the tip of his right middle finger.

The altercation happened after a clean and sober Depp said he fell off the wagon, after first locking himself in a bathroom. While a despondent Deep took “his first drink of alcohol in some time,” Heard allegedly began berating him, grabbed the vodka bottle and threw it at his head. It missed, and shattered behind him.

Depp says he responded by grabbing another larger bottle and pouring himself another shot. Depp said Heard grabbed that bottle, too, and threw it, smashing it against his hand and the bar and cutting off the top of his finger.

With his finger “gushing blood,” Depp said he recalled thinking to himself, “No one should have to go through this,” and suffered a “sort of a nervous breakdown.”

He added, “I started writing with blood on our walls, little reminders of our past…lies that I caught her in,” Depp said soberly, noting he could hear only “white noise, just somebody yelling, a high-pitched constant attack…of insults.”

“I was in shock,” he explained.

When his attorney showed him a photo of him in the emergency room, it sparked another memory for Depp, who pointed out an injury on his cheek, saying it was where Heard stubbed a cigarette out on it.

The actor also claimed to have told doctors at the emergency room he’d cut his own finger “to protect” Heard. “I didn’t want to see her get in trouble,” he explained.

The actor also testified he contracted MRSA three times after the injury, which was hidden from moviegoers during subsequent film work using CG technology. “I feared that I would lose my finger, my arm and my life,” he said.

Depp’s testimony earlier in the morning spoke about his substance abuse and painful attempts at detoxing, all the while detailing what he described as constant “bullying” he endured during his tumultuous relationship with Heard.

Heard’s lawyers were scheduled to cross-examine Depp after a lunch break.

Depp is suing the Aquaman actress for defamation for her 2019 Washington Post op-ed in which she said she was a victim of domestic abuse, and implied her abuser was Depp.

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TA-DUM…DA DUM DUM: It looks like Netflix will start clamping down on sharing passwords, following a brutal loss of some 200,000 streaming subscribers in the first three months of this year.

The Wall Street Journal reports the streaming service could lose as many as two million total subscribers this quarter.

The loss of 200,000 subscribers was the largest loss suffered by the company in a decade, and caused a 35% drop in the stock price for the streaming giant on Wall Street Wednesday.

Netflix CEO Reed Hastings revealed the grim subscriber statistics during an earnings call on Tuesday, in which he detailed plans to clamp down on subscribers sharing their passwords — which the company’s never seriously addressed — and also proposed a cheaper, ad-supported subscription rate.

The Journal reports Netflix had added more than 18 million subscribers in 2021, which was weaker than normal, and a drastic decline from the 36 million it had added in 2020, when millions of people were at home in front of their TVs during the early pandemic lockdowns.

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“You brought the love. You brought the thunder!” That’s the word to fans from Chris Hemsworth, who thanked them Tuesday for watching Thor: Love and Thunder‘s trailer more than 209 million times in just 24 hours.

The impressive performance ranks as the fourth most-watched coming attraction trailer in a 24-hour timeframe, following the views for three other Marvel Studios films.

The current record holder is Spider-Man: No Way Home, for which fans clicked “play” some 355.5 million times upon its trailer debut in August 2021.

In second and third place, respectively, are two other Hemsworth films, Avengers: Endgame, which attracted 289 million views in December 2018, and the trailer to Avengers: Infinity War, which attracted 230 million views when it hit the Internet in November of 2017.

Fans have been buzzing about Love and Thunder for months before getting their first official peek of the movie, and Bobby Holland Hanton, Hemsworth’s trainer and stunt double, tells ABC Audio it’s worth the wait.

“We knew that this was going to be amazing. I’m excited to say it’s going to be crazy,” says Holland, who’s doubled for his friend for more than a decade. “I’ve got a little part in it which I’m stoked about. The stunt team [members] were…absolutely incredible…And we put some really amazing stuff together.”

“Chris was on form, Taika’s on form,” Holland adds. “I think everyone’s going to be very, very, very pleased with the final result.”

Writer-director Taika Waititi‘s Thor: Love and Thunder, which also stars Tessa Thompson, Natalie Portman, Chris Pratt, Russell Crowe and Christian Bale, opens May 8.

Marvel Studios is owned by Disney, parent company of ABC News.

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The series finale of ABC’s black-ish aired Tuesday night, and for Marsai Martin and Miles Brown, who played twins Diane and Jack Johnson on the series, it was emotional. They had to say goodbye to a show — and a set — on which they literally grew up for eight seasons.

Incidentally, their goodbyes also paralleled those of their characters, who move from the Johnson family home in the final episode. So the pair told ABC Audio they wanted something to remember their experiences by.

“I’m not going to snitch on myself, but I would say that I definitely had some memorabilia that I was to like, I was too selfish to not keep…” Miles admitted. “I feel like I can say this for every character — I feel like I don’t want to speak for them — but I definitely took some stuff.”

Marsai admitted, laughing, “I didn’t take any furniture, I took a piece of wood. I took a chunk of the freaking set.“

She added, “So I used to write on a piece of wood…outside of the set, and I used to, like, put my signature on it from the beginning of the season. So season two to now, you can see the progression of my signature. So I just asked…when they tear down the set, give me a piece of the chunk that I’ve been writing on for the past eight years.”

Marsai explains, “I have a…little baby sister, so I didn’t want to have, like, a toy or something, and we end up losing it, or it’s in a garage or a public storage somewhere.”

“So I can frame it, I can do whatever with it, but it’s not going to go into storage nowhere. So that’s what I got,” she giggled.

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Julianne Hough has tested positive for COVID-19.

In an Instagram Story late Tuesday night, the 33-year-old actress and dancer announced her test results and revealed that she’ll have to miss a few performances of her Broadway show POTUS.

“Hi everyone, I’m really bummed to share that I have tested positive for COVID,” Julianne wrote. “I am feeling okay, but unfortunately need to miss a few POTUS shows.”

“Out of an abundance of caution, I’ll be quarantining until I get the safe sign-off to return,” she continued. “Can’t wait for everyone to see our incredible show! Julianne xoxo.”

POTUS, which opened last week, also stars Rachel Dratch, Lilli Cooper, Lea DeLaria, Suzy Nakamura, Julie White and Vanessa Williams.

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Ben Affleck and Matt Damon are teaming up again, this time for the true-life story of former Nike executive Sonny Vaccarro, according to The Hollywood Reporter. They’re reportedly in the process of finalizing a feature project for Amazon Studios and Skydance Sports that the duo will write, produce and co-star in together and that Affleck will direct. Damon will portray Vaccarro, while Affleck plays Nike co-founder Phil Knight in a story about Nike’s longshot effort to sign rising superstar basketball player Michael Jordan to its shoe company in the mid-80s. The project will mark Affleck’s first time directing a feature starring his long-time pal, Damon. The two were most recently seen on screen together in filmmaker Ridley Scott‘s medieval drama The Last Duel, last year…

After a decade and more than 20 films with the Hallmark Channel, Candace Cameron Bure is bolting from the family-friendly network and moving to Great American Channels. “GAC fits my brand perfectly; we share a vision of creating compelling wholesome content for an audience who wants to watch programming for and with the whole family,” the Full House alum said in a statement on Tuesday. In a statement to Us Weekly, a spokesperson for Hallmark’s parent company, Crown Media, said in part, “We respect [Candace’s] decision and thank her for her many contributions.” While TVLine reports that Bure’s GAC deal is exclusive to romcoms and holiday movies, leaving the possibility for more Aurora Teagarden Mysteries for Hallmark Movies and Mysteries channel, the Hallmark spokesperson tells Us, the network, “will air existing [Aurora Teagarden] movies [but have] no plans for new ones”…

Venom: Let There Be Carnage helmer Andy Serkis is directing an animated adaptation of George Orwell’s classic novella Animal Farm for Aniventure and his own company, The Imaginarium, according to Deadline. The satirical 1945 novella follows a group of farm animals that rebel against their human owner, in hopes of creating an equal, free and happy society. In a statement obtained by Deadline, Serkis says he hopes “to make our version of Orwell’s ever relevant masterpiece, emotionally powerful, humorous, and relatable for all ages. A tale not only for our times, but for generations to come.” Serkis can currently be seen playing Alfred in Matt Reeves‘ global smash The Batman…

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Ezra Miller was arrested for second-degree assault early Tuesday morning in Hawaii.

The actor became irate after being asked to leave a get-together at a home on the island of Hawaii and threw a chair, hitting a woman in the forehead, according to a news release from the Hawaii County Police Department.

The woman refused treatment for a half-inch cut on her forehead, police said.

Miller, described by police as a 29-year-old visitor from Vermont, was arrested during a traffic stop and released pending further investigation.

This is the second time the actor has been arrested in Hawaii in recent weeks. Miller was previously arrested last month at a Big Island karaoke bar. During his court hearing, which was also on Tuesday, he pleaded no contest to disorderly conduct and was ordered to pay a $500 fine and stay away from Margarita Village in Hilo, Hawaii.

Miller had also been charged with disorderly conduct and harassment after police said the actor grabbed a mic from a singing woman and lunged at a man playing darts during last month’s incident. As part of a plea deal, prosecutors dropped the harassment charge, along with an unrelated traffic charge.

There was no mention of the latest arrest during the court hearing.

Miller is known for playing The Flash in the DC Justice League films, and in his own forthcoming stand-alone The Flash film, due out next year. He also has a key role in the third installment of the Harry Potter spinoff Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, which opened last weekend.

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(NOTE LANGUAGE) The ABC family comedy black-ish ended its eight-year run Tuesday night, with Anthony Anderson‘s Andre Johnson quitting his job and moving the family out of the familiar Sherman Oaks, California home they’ve shared for the past eight seasons — with a little encouragement from Olympian Simone Biles.

As the episode opens, it seems not much has changed in the 17 years since the Johnsons moved into the posh neighborhood, leading Andre to believe he’s ready for a change.

“If I’ve learned anything, I would say you have to do what you want to do, and not what anybody else wants you to do,” Biles, tells Dre during a visit to his office. “Do a gut check. What’s your heart telling you?”

When Dre pitches the idea of moving to a Black neighborhood to his wife, Rainbow — played by Tracee Ellis Ross — and adds that he wants to quit his job too, she enthusiastically replies, “I think we should blow this b**** up.”

The Johnson kids, Diane and Jack — played respectively by Marsai Martin and Miles Brown — are skeptical at first, until they get a look at their sprawling new digs.

However, the move is bittersweet for Marcus Scribner‘s Junior, who realizes “It’s not just over for me this time, it’s over for all of us.”

As Dre and Bow survey the now empty rooms of the soon-to-be former digs, they decide to hold a New Orleans-style funeral for the house. Now joined by Yara Shahidi‘s Zoey, they throw roses into a casket, after which they’re joined by the entire cast and crew, who dance down the street to the strains of “When the Saints Go Marching In,” followed by Stevie Wonder‘s “As.”

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