The man who supplied guns and blank ammo to makers of the ill-fated Western film "Rust" filed a lawsuit in New Mexico against Alec Baldwin, producers and other movie employees, claiming they've scapegoated him for the deadly on-set shooting four years ago.
Seth Kenney, owner of PDQ Arm & Prop, said Baldwin and other defendants have wrongly cast him as the man responsible for the accidental death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and the wounding of director Joel Souza on Oct. 21, 2021.
"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 nation-wide false light scapegoat smear campaign," according to Kenney's complaint filed last week in Santa Fe.
More specifically, Kenney claims he's been wrongly identified as the source of a live round that found its way into the weapon that was in Baldwin's hands on the day he was rehearsing a scene inside a rustic church.
“Defendants, individually and collectively, knew or should have known, like any reasonable person; that broadcasting a completely false narrative associated with death and injury, would be highly offensive,” according to Kenney.
Kenney accused those on the "Rust" set of not adhering to well-established gun safety standards on movie sets and called out the movie's armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, of openly ignoring warnings.
Gutierrez-Reed — who was released earlier this year after her conviction for involuntary manslaughter — at one point during "Rust" production "texted Plaintiffs, that she was desirous to shoot live ammunition from guns used to film 'The Old Way,'" according to Kenney's complaint.
"Plaintiffs replied 'Never shoot live Amnio out of TV/Movie guns. Only blanks. It's a serious mistake, alway ends in tears.' Defendant Gutierrez-Reed replied 'Good to know. I’m still gonna shoot mine tho,'" the complaint continued.
A representative for Baldwin and Gutierrez-Reed's attorney declined to comment on Kenney's civil action when reached by NBC News on Friday.
