“Rust” director Joel Souza has given his first interview about the October 2021 on-set shooting, in which a prop gun held by star Alec Baldwin fired a live bullet, killing cameraman Halyna Hutchins and critically wounding Souza. Speaking to Vanity Fair, Souza candidly discussed the experience of being shot, his decision to finish the film and why he and Baldwin are now “not in a relationship.”

"It's crazy to be shot," Souza said. "And who was holding the gun? That's crazy. I had this weird thought, like, 'God, I remember watching 'The Hunt for Red October' in the theater when I was a kid. It's like your older self whispering to your younger self, 'Hey, that guy… once…'"

Souza was standing behind Hutchins, directing a scene, when the gun went off, hitting Hutchins in the chest and Souza in the shoulder. He told Vanity Fair that the gunshot "felt like a horse kicking me in the shoulder or someone hitting me with a club."

“The whole right side of my body went numb, completely numb, but it was also really painful at the same time, if that makes sense,” he continued. “It was like everything was tingling and going numb, but it was also really painful. And I was staggering backwards and I was on my knees or on my butt — and I was just screaming. I don’t even know what the hell I was screaming.”