In a startling revelation during the second day of testimony in Alec Baldwin’s involuntary manslaughter trial, crime scene technician Marissa Poppell disclosed that one of the live bullets found on the set of “Rust” was discovered in the bandolier of actor Jensen Ackles. This detail emerged nearly three years after the tragic shooting that claimed the life of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the New Mexico set of the Western film.
Poppell testified about the various live rounds found on set, which were located on a prop cart, in a box of ammunition, and in two prop gun holsters—one worn by Baldwin and the other by Ackles. Defense attorney Alex Spiro questioned Poppell about the discovery:
“Mr. Ackles, another actor on the set, turns out that he—as he acted, as he performed—had a live bullet in his bandolier, correct?” Spiro asked.
“Yes,” Poppell replied.
“You have no reason to think Mr. Ackles had any idea that was there, right?” Spiro continued.
“Correct,” Poppell confirmed.
Jensen Ackles, renowned for his roles in the series “Supernatural” and Amazon Prime Video’s “The Boys,” was on set the day Hutchins was fatally shot. In a 2022 interview with USA Today, Ackles reflected on the tragic incident, expressing his shock and sorrow.
“You can chalk it up to negligence or try to point a finger at anybody,” Ackles told the publication. “At the end of the day, it was a horrible, horrible accident that ended with a life. Unfortunately, those do happen all the time around the world everywhere. You don’t normally witness them like I did, and it’s certainly shocking and jarring. It makes you value life even more than you had.”
Ackles also remembered Hutchins’ exceptional talent and the promising work they were completing. “We were only about a week and a half away from being done with that film, so there was a lot of footage in the can and she was doing something really exceptional,” he said. “She was an incredible talent, and I wish there was some way to get it out there to the masses, but I don’t know that that’s possible.”
Despite his involvement in the incident, Ackles is not listed in the IMDb cast credits for “Rust.” Actor Josh Hopkins replaced him in the role due to a scheduling conflict, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.
As the trial continues, these new revelations add complexity to the case, highlighting the severe lapses in safety protocols on the set of “Rust” and the tragic consequences that followed.