Buckle Up: Another Movie is Being Filmed in Montana

Photo from the movie set for Rust, which is filming in Montana.

I’m not one to follow celebrities or Hollywood very closely — so I only had a cursory knowledge of the shooting on the set of Rust in 2021 that killed a woman on the film crew, injured the director, and landed the film’s star in a lot of trouble.

But now that the gritty western is coming to Montana, I’m paying attention.

After a two-year hiatus, Rust will resume — moving from Santa Fe, New Mexico to the Yellowstone Ranch near Bozeman. According to a release, shooting (which might not be the best verb in this context) begins this week. Director Joel Souza, who was also injured in the shooting, said he is back on the project to honor Helyna Hutchins’ memory after she was fatally wounded when actor Alec Baldwin pointed a gun at her and it discharged.

What happened on the set exactly that led to a fatality? According to an Associated Press article, “Baldwin has said the gun went off accidentally and that he did not pull the trigger. An FBI forensic report found the weapon could not have fired unless the trigger was pulled.” Although Baldwin claims it was an accident, the Santa Fe District Attorney says the death was preventable.

That certainly leaves more questions than it answers.

One thing is for certain. Montana isn’t going to stop being a boon for films anytime soon. Among the popular titles for movies and TV shows set in the state: Legends of the Fall, starring Brad Pitt; A River Runs through It, also starring Brad Pitt; The Revenant, starring Leonardo DiCaprio (which should be considered a cautionary tale about what happens if you forget to pack bear spray on a hike); The River Wild, starring Meryl Streep; and who can forget about the sensation Yellowstone and its many spin off shows have caused. Most of which have been shot in Darby, south of Missoula.

Despite the fact that the recent popularity of Big Sky Country on the Big Screen has made home prices skyrocket and Montana a less attainable place to live for longtime Montanans, viewers can’t seem to get enough of our unique landscape. The media prices of a home in Missoula is $610,000, compared to the $290,000 median price in 2018 when Yellowstone debuted.

Don’t expect films created in Montana to go away anytime soon. Montanans are being pushed out as Hollywood moves in. And that’s a bummer because the people who grew up here should be able to afford to raise their kids here.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to go watch Legends of the Fall for the 500th time and cry.