WATCH: FBI’s damning finding against Alec Baldwin on ‘Rust’ shooting

According to a report released by the FBI, the gun that killed a cinematographer on the set of 'Rust' "could not be made to fire without a pull of the trigger".

Picture: AFP PHOTO / SANTA FE COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE / HANDOUT

The news of the fatal shooting of cinematographer, Halyna Hutchins on the set of Rust in October 2021, sent shock waves through the film industry.

After news of the shooting went viral on social media, initial reports suggested that actor and producer Alec Baldwin’s prop gun accidentally discharged during a rehearsal for a scene in Santa Fe, New Mexico, killing Hutchins and wounding director Joel Souza.

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In an interview with ABC in December 2021, Baldwin said he did not pull the trigger of the gun he was holding that killed Hutchins.

At the time, he explained that he started cocking the gun that killed the cinematographer but did not pull the trigger.

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“I feel that someone is responsible for what happened and I can’t say who that is. But I know it’s not me,” he told ABC in his first major interview since the on-set tragedy in New Mexico in October.

However, new information has now come to the fore.

Officials from the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) have released a forensic report, obtained by ABC News on Friday, which rejected the 64-year-old’s claim.

Following “accidental discharge testing,” the FBI officers concluded that the gun “could not be made to fire without a pull of the trigger”.

With the “hammer fully locked”, they also asserted that the firearm “could not be made to fire without a pull of the trigger while the working internal components were intact and functional”.

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Representatives for Baldwin and the producers of Rust have not commented on the findings of the report.

The incident is still being investigated by the Sante Fe County Sherriff’s office and no charges or arrests have been made.

Baldwin and the Rust producers were named as defendants in a wrongful death lawsuit filed by Hutchin’s husband in February.

Baldwin has consistently maintained his innocence and recently said he feels “very hopeful” that he won’t be held criminally responsible.