The daily gossip: Alec Baldwin denies responsibility for Rust shooting, Octavia Spencer loves the ghost that haunts her house, and more

(Image credit: Mark Sagliocco/Getty Images for National Geographic)

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1. Alec Baldwin says 'someone is responsible' for the 'Rust' shooting, but 'it's not me'
2. Octavia Spencer: My house is haunted by a ghost and 'I love him'
3. George Clooney passed on making $35 million in 1 day
4. Nicole Kidman unsuccessfully attempted to back out of Lucille Ball role
5. New Chris Evans movie will now reunite him with Ana de Armas instead of Scarlett Johansson

published 3 December 2021

1. Alec Baldwin says 'someone is responsible' for the 'Rust' shooting, but 'it's not me'

ABC on Thursday night aired its primetime interview with Alec Baldwin, who discussed in detail the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of his film Rust. The actor claimed he never pulled the trigger on the prop gun, telling George Stephanopoulos he cocked the gun while they were blocking a scene and it unexpectedly went off after he let go of the hammer. But Baldwin said that when Hutchins fell, he thought she might have fainted or had a heart attack and never considered there could have been a live round in the gun "until probably 45 minutes to an hour later." Baldwin called for answers about how the live round got on set. "Someone is responsible for what happened, and I can't say who that is, but I know it's not me," he said. "Honest to God, if I felt that I was responsible, I might have killed myself." Baldwin also said he can't imagine making another movie that involves guns and suggested he could stop acting entirely. "I couldn't give a s--- about my career anymore," he said.

Octavia Spencer ain't afraid of her ghost housemate. The actress revealed on The Ellen DeGeneres Show that her house was previously owned by a late actor who starred in Westerns, and she's convinced his ghost haunts the place. To be clear, she's totally fine with that. "I think he is my protector," she said. "I love him, because he kind of sorts out the bad people that shouldn't be there. He runs them out." The Hidden Figures star claimed the ghost gets "a little shady" when she's away for a long time, as "the doors close, the lights go off when I turn them on." They do apparently have a bit of an understanding, though. "He doesn't haunt me," she said. "We have boundaries." In case you were hoping to set up your own ghost on a playdate with hers, though, Spencer declared, "I love my ghost, I just don't want you bringing your ghost to my house. I don't want anybody's ghost thinking they can be friends with my ghost!"

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Wouldn't it be nice to be so rich you can be presented with the opportunity to make $35 million in a day and decide, "Nah, I'm good"? George Clooney did just that, revealing in an interview with The Guardian he was once offered a $35 million payday "for one day's work for an airline commercial." But he discussed the offer with his wife, Amal Clooney, and ended up turning it down. "I talked to Amal about it and we decided it's not worth it," Clooney explained. "It was [associated with] a country that, although it's an ally, is questionable at times, and so I thought: 'Well, if it takes a minute's sleep away from me, it's not worth it.'" If only he was that discerning after reading the script of Batman & Robin.

Nicole Kidman could earn an Oscar nod for a role she nearly quit amid online backlash. On Live with Kelly and Ryan, the actress discussed playing Lucille Ball in Aaron Sorkin's new movie Being the Ricardos, explaining she had second thoughts. Kidman's casting drew some backlash as I Love Lucy fans complained she doesn't look anything like the real Ball. "When the reality of playing her hit me, I went, 'What have I said yes to?'" Kidman said. "To which I then went, 'Oh no, I'm not right! Everyone thinks I'm not right!'" In fact, Kidman tried to back out of the movie, but the film's producer and Sorkin himself told her, "Absolutely not." Now, she says she's "so grateful" they did. If she ends up winning an Oscar, Sorkin, who has defended the casting, may well declare: "Twitter, you've got some 'splaining to do!"

Chris Evans' Marvel reunion is now a Knives Out reunion instead. Evans was set to reunite with his Marvel co-star Scarlett Johansson in a new "romantic action adventure" film at Apple, Ghosted. Johansson has now dropped out of the project, though, which Deadline reports was due to a scheduling conflict. But maybe producers still liked the whole reunion angle, as the movie has now replaced her with Evans' Knives Out co-star Ana de Armas, who also recently received way too little screen time in No Time to Die. Evans and de Armas both already worked together again on the upcoming Netflix film The Gray Man. And hey, if de Armas' schedule doesn't work out either, perhaps Aubrey Plaza could make it a Scott Pilgrim reunion, or maybe Jessica Alba could make it a Fantastic Four reunion? We could do this all day.

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Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.