Rust gun supplier sues Alec Baldwin and producers over scapegoat smear campaign'

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"A weapons supplier who worked on Rust has filed a sweeping lawsuit against Alec Baldwin and the film's producers and crew, accusing them of waging a scapegoat smear campaign that destroyed his livelihood after the fatal 2021 shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. In a 35-page complaint filed this week in a New Mexico court, Seth Kenney and his company, PDQ Arm and Prop, claim that Baldwin and the film's production team intentionally defamed him by suggesting his firm supplied live ammunition that caused Hutchins's death."

"Defendants, individually and collectively, in an effort to distance themselves from the Rust criminal investigation and onslaught of negative publicity, conspired to paint plaintiffs in a nationwide false light scapegoat smear campaign, the lawsuit reads. Baldwin, who is Rust's lead actor and co-producer, was pointing a gun at Hutchins during a rehearsal on set in October 2021 when it went off, killing the cinematographer and wounding director Joel Souza."

Seth Kenney and his company PDQ Arm and Prop filed a 35-page complaint in New Mexico alleging Alec Baldwin and the Rust production intentionally defamed them by falsely suggesting the firm supplied live ammunition that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. The complaint accuses Baldwin and others of launching a nationwide scapegoat smear campaign that destroyed Kenney's livelihood and seeks unspecified damages for reputational and financial harm. The filing alleges defendants sought to distance themselves from the criminal investigation and negative publicity. Baldwin was pointing a gun at Hutchins during an October 2021 rehearsal when it discharged, killing Hutchins and wounding director Joel Souza.

Read at www.independent.co.uk