The 2024 movie RUST, which was directed by Joel Souza and co-written by Alec Baldwin, may look and feel like a gritty, emotional Western based on real events, but it’s actually a made-up story in the style of old Westerns. The movie follows the intense and tragic journey of a young boy and his grandfather as they try to get away from the law. Alec Baldwin plays Harland Rust. Some parts of the story are based on real-life hardships and cultural themes from the Old West, but the characters and plot are not based on any real people or events.
WHAT IS THE MOVIE “RUST” ABOUT?
Rust is set in Wyoming Territory in 1882 and is about Lucas Hollister, a 13-year-old boy who takes care of his younger brother Jacob after their mother died and their father killed himself. Lucas is given the death penalty for killing a bully’s father to protect Jacob. He is saved by a stranger: Harland Rust, his estranged outlaw grandfather (Alec Baldwin).
They run together toward the New Mexico Territory and become close because they are both sad. Marshal Wood Helm (Josh Hopkins) the unstable bounty hunter Preacher Lang (Travis Fimmel), and others are after them. Bounty hunters, Native Kiowa warriors, and the harsh wilderness are also after them. When there is a shootout, Harland saves Wood by killing Preacher. In exchange, Wood lets Lucas get away from the law.
Harland dies from his wounds and is then hung. Lucas and Jacob make it safely to Mexico, where their great-aunt, Harland’s sister, greets them. She secretly planned the rescue. In the end, Lucas changes his name to Lucas Rust to honor the man who died for him.
IS “RUST” BASED ON A REAL STORY?
Rust is not based on real events, even though it has a very Western feel and is told in an emotional way. The plot was made just for the movie, but it has a lot of realistic moments and events that could have happened in real life. According to Alec Baldwin and Joel Souza, they made up the story themselves—using common Western themes but not directly based on real events.
Alec Baldwin has said that the story was partly based on real events in history—like how unfair things were and how people had to survive in the Old West. However, the characters, like Harland Rust and Lucas Hollister—are made up. Of note, there is no record of a real criminal named Harland Rust or a boy named Lucas who was given the wrong sentence of hanging and was saved by his grandfather. The movie’s emotional core comes from universal themes like family, grief, redemption, and sacrifice, not from real events.
A FICTIONAL WESTERN WITH REAL-WORLD TRAGEDY
Even though Rust is a made-up story, the movie got a lot of attention because of a real tragedy that happened while it was being made. Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was fatally shot on the set in 2021 during the filming of the movie, after a prop gun held by Alec Baldwin discharged. This heartbreaking incident shook the film industry and paused the project’s production for a long period.
After the tragedy, safety rules on movie sets were looked at again, and legal proceedings got a lot of attention from the public. However, the film was finished and released in 2024, even though this happened.
The movie Rust isn’t based on a true story but it still has a lot of emotional power and great acting from everyone in it. The story is about second chances—fairness and the relationship between a boy and his grandfather. It puts those personal issues in the bigger picture of the American frontier, using that setting to look at struggles that affect everyone.
The harsh setting, moral questions, and dangerous characters make Rust seem like a story taken straight from history books, but don’t be fooled—it’s a work of fiction.
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