'Rust' director Joel Souza seen with arm sling as he continues to recover from movie set shooting

By Mariah Haas

Joel Souza was recently seen with an arm sling outside his home as he continues to recover after an accidental shooting on the movie set of "Rust" that left him injured and cinematographer Halyna Hutchins dead.

Alec Baldwin was rehearsing a scene for the movie on Oct. 21 that required him to cross-draw his revolver, which he was led to believe by assistant director Dave Halls was a "cold gun," a term used to describe a gun that is safe to handle. Halls picked up the gun after armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed had placed it on a cart on set.

Prop master Sarah Zachry also handled the gun before the fatal shooting, according to a search warrant executed by the Santa Fe Sheriff's Office.

Joel Souza was recently seen with an arm sling outside of his home as he continues to recover after an accidental shooting on the movie set of ‘Rust’ that left him injured and cinematographer Halyna Hutchins dead. (Flightrisk / BACKGRID)

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The director was accidentally shot by Alec Baldwin on the New Mexico set of ‘Rust’ Oct. 21. (Flightrisk / BACKGRID)

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The shooting left cinematographer Halyna Hutchins dead. (Flightrisk / BACKGRID)

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Baldwin was rehearsing a scene for the movie that required him to cross-draw his revolver, which he was led to believe by assistant director Dave Halls was a ‘cold gun,’ a term used to describe a gun that is safe to handle. Halls picked up the gun after armorer Hannah Gutierrez Reed had placed it on a cart on set. (Flightrisk / BACKGRID)

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Souza previously released a statement to Fox News. (Flightrisk / BACKGRID)

'I am gutted by the loss of my friend and colleague, Halyna,' he said. 'She was kind, vibrant, incredibly talented, fought for every inch and always pushed me to be better. My thoughts are with her family at this most difficult time.' (Flightrisk / BACKGRID)

Souza previously released a statement to Fox News.

"I am gutted by the loss of my friend and colleague, Halyna," he said. "She was kind, vibrant, incredibly talented, fought for every inch and always pushed me to be better. My thoughts are with her family at this most difficult time."

"I am humbled and grateful by the outpouring of affection we have received from our filmmaking community, the people of Santa Fe, and the hundreds of strangers who have reached out. … It will surely aid in my recovery. "

The Santa Fe County Sheriff's Department is still investigating the shooting and said it was "too early" to comment on potential criminal charges during a press conference Wednesday.

Baldwin spoke out publicly on Saturday for the first time amid the investigation. "It's an active investigation in terms of a woman died, she was my friend," Baldwin said.

"We were a very, very well-oiled crew shooting a film together, and then this horrible event happened," he added.

"There are incidental accidents on film sets from time to time, but nothing like this," he said. "This is a one in a trillion episode. It's a one in a trillion event."

Baldwin said he is "extremely interested" in limiting the use of firearms on set following the fatal incident.

Fox News' Tyler McCarthy and Lauryn Overhultz contributed to this report

Mariah Haas is a senior entertainment editor for Fox News Digital.

https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/joel-souza-rust-director-injured-arm-sling-recovery