Alec Baldwin and 'Rust' Safety Adviser Were Reportedly 'Yelling' Over A Horse

Actor Alec Baldwin could face up to 18 months in prison in connection with the October 2021 shooting of "Rust"  cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.

Armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter earlier this year and was sentenced to the state maximum of 18 months behind bars by Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer, who will oversee Baldwin's trial as well.

New evidence against Alec Baldwin continues to leak to the press ahead of his July trial, including allegations that there was "yelling" between him and a "Rust" safety adviser over a horse.

Production on the Western indie film began in 2021 in Bonanza Creek Ranch in New Mexico. However, after the October 2021 shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, production was moved to Montana. The film wrapped in the spring of 2023, but the finished film has yet to find a buyer.

When filming resumed in Montana, there was an emphasis on safety to make sure that no one else could get injured on set. Functional firearms were prohibited on set and two veteran safety officers were hired to oversee filming. Although the crew was able to complete the film without any major accidents, safety officer Paul Jordan says that there was some "yelling at times" in regards to what Alec Baldwin could and could not do on set.

Safety adviser Paul Jordan is scheduled to testify against Alec Baldwin at his involuntary manslaughter trial in Santa Fe later this month. The safety advisor is expected to talk about how the "30 Rock" actor tried to ride a horse at full gallop, despite being told not to.

“There was a little bit of yelling at times, insisting he could do certain things that everyone else felt he couldn’t do,” Jordan testified in a pre-trial interview obtained by Variety. The prosecution plans to use Jordan's testimony in order to establish that the 66-year-old actor was reckless on set. They plan to show the jury videos taken on the "Rust" set in New Mexico that allegedly show Baldwin cursing and yelling on set.

Since Paul Jordan was not working on the "Rust" set in New Mexico, he cannot testify to what Alec Baldwin's interactions were like with crew members there. Since the shooting happened in New Mexico, his legal team has argued against letting Jordan testify.

“Nothing that took place in Montana, more than a year after the accident occurred, is relevant to any issue in this case,” his lawyers argued in a motion filed earlier this year while trying to stop the case from going to trial.

In a pre-trial interview, "Rust" safety adviser Paul Jordan said that Alec Baldwin needed three or four people to help him mount and dismount a horse due to what Baldwin described as a bad hip.

Although he had trouble getting on the horse, Jordan claimed that Baldwin wanted to gallop over uneven terrain, despite safety advisers encouraging him to go no faster than a gentle walk.

“We took the gallop out of it completely,” Jordan explained. “He just kept insisting that he was capable of doing it, and we didn’t feel he was.”

After some alleged "yelling" back and forth, Jordan said that Baldwin "very reluctantly" did what he was asked.

Paul Jordan's experience in the entertainment industry will be discussed at the trial. He worked at Universal overseeing safety on film sets until his retirement in 2022. "Rust" was one of his first consulting jobs.

During the pre-trial interview, Jordan said that he expected the job to be a “simple, very straightforward” production because entertainment unions were paying close attention to the production following the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. However, Jordan said that was not the case.

“There were a lot of budget issues,” Jordan said during his pre-trial interview. “We had a lot of complaints of people that weren’t getting paid properly."

"There wasn’t always enough prep time, very last-minute decisions on a lot of things that should have been handled earlier on," he continued, describing it as a "Very, very difficult communication.”

He also noted that several people quit because they didn’t think they could do their jobs with the limited resources provided by producers.

Alec Baldwin's legal team is still fighting Paul Jordan's testimony, arguing that the actor's attitude on set in 2023 has nothing to do with the October 2021 shooting.

“Baldwin is on trial for involuntary manslaughter, not his attitude,” the defense wrote in one court filing obtained by Variety.

His attorneys are also arguing that the prosecution is purposely trying to use clips from the film to create confusion between the actor's behavior and that of his on-screen character.

“Using isolated clips of an actor playing a cowboy on a movie set as evidence of the actor’s recklessness is like using footage of a boxing match as evidence that the boxer is violent,” his lawyers wrote.

On Monday, a hearing to determine what, if any, testimony will be excluded from trial has been scheduled. Jury selection is expected to begin on Tuesday.

If convicted, Alec Baldwin can face up to 18 months behind bars.