The tragic shooting by actor Alec Baldwin on the set of “Rust” that resulted in the death of one staff member and serious injury of another has brought about a lot of questions surrounding the guns used in movies. What is a prop gun? Is it a real gun? Are there any regulations surrounding them? We’ll take a look at each of these questions and lay out the answers.
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Are Prop Guns Real Guns?
The first issue is with all the media outlets calling the gun used in the shooting a “prop gun.” Make no mistake: the gun used in the shooting was a real gun. For as long as there have been movies, scenes with gunfire in them have used real guns. That’s the only way to get the flash of the powder, the bang of the ignition, and the recoil in the actor’s hands. Of course, for safety’s sake, these guns are loaded with blanks. A blank gives all of the above, but without the bullet. It doesn’t make a blank non-lethal, but it does make it less lethal.
These real guns get called prop guns because they get lumped into all of the other accessories used by actors in the course of filming a movie. But make no mistake: they are very much real guns.
What is a Prop Gun?
So we’ve established that so-called prop guns are real guns. But there are also actual prop guns that get used on movie and TV sets as well. These guns are made of rubber, plastic, or resin and they may be hard and solid or soft and squishy. These actual prop guns are used in scenes where a real firearm is not appropriate. For example, if a gun is going to get dropped on the ground, a hard plastic prop gun will likely be used. If an actor is going to pistol-whip someone, they’ll use a soft rubber prop gun.
Regardless of what they’re made from, all actual prop guns have one thing in common: they are not capable of firing any kind of ammunition – blank or otherwise. In this instance, most prop guns have less function than the cap guns sold in toy stores.
Do Movies Need an FFL to Use Guns?
The short answer here is yes. Even if the guns being used are only ever going to be used to fire blanks (which is how it should be – a movie gun should never come into contact with live ammunition), then yes, an FFL is necessary. This is because we’ve already established that those guns are legitimate, real guns.
Most often, the production companies making movies don’t have an FFL. Instead, they hire out to a separate company that has an FFL and staff trained in the proper use of firearms on movie and TV sets.
If, however, production will only be using rubber, plastic, or resin guns and there will be no actual firearms anywhere on set, then no, an FFL is not needed.
Blurred Lines
The whole goal of Hollywood is to suspend reality and create a world of fantasy. Unfortunately, this often means that the lines get blurred when it comes to the actual production of a movie and the different aspects that go into making it all possible. People think things that are real (like guns being used as props) aren’t actually real because everyone is just acting.
This was painfully evident on the “Rust” set when a real firearm being used as a prop was not treated with the respect that needs to be given to all firearms, and the result was a needless tragedy.
Have you applied for your FFL License yet?
FFL stands for Federal Firearms License. There are several different types of FFL’s which allow you to sell, manufacture, import or even acquire collector’s guns more easily. FFL’s are usually described by the type number assigned to them by the ATF. For instance a Type 01 license is the most common, and is for basic gun dealing and gunsmithing, while a Type 07 lets you manufacture and sell guns.
An FFL allows you to receive and ship firearms at your home – or wherever you ultimately decide to make your place of business. This is beneficial to not only serious collectors, but also to gun buyers just looking to save money.
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