Alec Baldwin has claimed that he “didn’t pull the trigger” on the gun that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and injured director Joel Souza on the set of film Rust.

On October 21 authorities said that Baldwin discharged a prop firearm on set at Bonanza Creed Ranch in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Hutchins, 42, was airlifted to hospital but later died from her injuries.

In a clip from an upcoming interview with George Stephanopoulos on ABC titled Alec Baldwin Unscripted, the actor claimed he never pulled the trigger.

“The trigger wasn’t pulled,” Baldwin said in the clip. “I didn’t pull the trigger. I would never point a gun at anyone and pull a trigger at them, never.”

Asked by @GStephanopoulos how a real bullet got on the "Rust" set, Alec Baldwin says: “I have no idea. Someone put a live bullet in a gun. A bullet that wasn’t even supposed to be on the property.”

Watch TOMORROW 8pm ET on ABC and stream later on @hulu. https://t.co/fJQly1za1T pic.twitter.com/OnpDuYERiC

— ABC News (@ABC) December 1, 2021

Asked about how a real bullet got on the set, Baldwin replied: “I have no idea.

“Someone put a live bullet in the gun – a bullet that wasn’t even supposed to be on the property.”

Speaking about Hutchins, Baldwin said: “She was someone who was loved by everyone who worked with her, liked by everyone she worked with and admired. Even now, I find it hard to believe that, it just doesn’t seem real to me.”

On Good Morning America Stephanopoulos described the interview as the most “intense” he’s ever conducted.

“I’ve done thousands of interviews in the last twenty years at ABC. This was the most intense I’ve ever experienced,” he said.

“So raw. As you can imagine he’s devastated, but he was also very candid, he was very forthcoming. He answered every question, he talked about Halyna Hutchins, talked about meeting her family as well.

AN @ABC EXCLUSIVE: @GStephanopoulos has the 1st exclusive interview with Alec Baldwin following the deadly shooting on the set of “Rust.”

Watch the primetime special event TOMORROW 8pm ET on ABC and stream next day on @Hulu. pic.twitter.com/uX5jiEkQgG

— Good Morning America (@GMA) December 1, 2021

“[He] went through in detail what happened on the set that day, and I have to tell you I was surprised in many places over the course of that hour and twenty minutes we sat down yesterday.”

The full interview will air in the US on ABC at 8pm ET (1am in the UK) tomorrow (December 2) and will be released on streaming service Hulu afterwards.

Police are investigating leads on possible sources of ammunition that led to the shooting on the Rust film set, and recently searched the premises of a firearms supplier in Albuquerque.

Last month, a Rust crew member filed a lawsuit against the film’s production team, including Baldwin, for general negligence which caused “severe emotional distress”.