On October 21, 2021, at the Bonanza Creek Ranch in Bonanza City, New Mexico, United States, cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was fatally shot and director Joel Souza was injured on the set of the film Rust when a live round was discharged from a revolver used as a prop by actor Alec Baldwin. The weapon had not been thoroughly checked for safety in advance.
As of 2022[update], the incident is being investigated by the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office, the New Mexico First Judicial District Attorney, the New Mexico Occupational Health and Safety Bureau, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Production of Rust was suspended until January 2023, and the incident prompted a discourse on occupational safety in the film industry, the treatment of its employees, and the use of real guns as props.
Writer and director Joel Souza conceived the story for Rust with actor and producer Alec Baldwin. The Western film was produced on a small budget of $6–7 million and was Baldwin's passion project. Its distribution rights were sold for $2 million during the pre-production phase. The production had a filming schedule of twenty-one days. Filming began on October 6, 2021, at the Bonanza Creek Ranch in Bonanza City, New Mexico, a ghost town located thirteen miles south of Santa Fe.

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