Yesterday, reports spread like wildfire around the internet that Alec Baldwin would be charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter for pulling the trigger in the killing of Halyna Hutchins on the set of Rust in October 2021.

Is there a concise explanation for why Alec Baldwin is potentially responsible? I’m asking seriously. I haven’t followed this closely nor did I go to law school, but it seems the negligence lies elsewhere, no? https://t.co/zRDafH63fo

— Stephen Holder (@HolderStephen) January 19, 2023

In the year since the tragedy, Baldwin has denied responsibility, claiming he was assured on the day in question that the gun he had been rehearsing with did not contain live ammo. Prosecutors, however, are arguing that it was Baldwin's responsibility to check the gun for live ammunition before handling it. The film's armorer, Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, is also charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter.

"We’re trying to definitely make it clear that everybody’s equal under the law, including A-list actors like Alec Baldwin," Special Prosecutor Andrea Reeb said. "And we also want to make sure that the safety of the film industry is addressed and things like this don’t happen again."

Though the tragedy has certainly been fuel for dark jokes at Baldwin's expense, the charge comes as a surprise for many in the film industry and Baldwin's own lawyers, who contend it was not the actor's responsibility to know if the gun was loaded, but rather the crew around him.

"Mr. Baldwin had no reason to believe there was a live bullet in the gun — or anywhere on the movie set," Luke Nikas, Baldwin's attorney, stated. "He relied on the professionals with whom he worked, who assured him the gun did not have live rounds. We will fight these charges, and we will win."

SAG-AFTRA contended, "An actor’s job is not to be a firearms or weapons expert."

Anyone who has ever worked on a film set will know that actors rely entirely on the armourer to hand them a safe weapon. Charging Alec Baldwin is insanity.

— Emma Kennedy (@EmmaKennedy) January 19, 2023

To charge Alec Baldwin as a producer is one thing, but to charge him as an actor seems to misunderstand the chain of responsibility on a movie set. If you’re charging the actor, you should be charging the director, all producers, prop master, many others. The fact the DA didn’t… pic.twitter.com/ixShDPbgGw

— Robert King (@RKing618) January 19, 2023

Am I the only one who thinks it wasn’t Alec Baldwin’s responsibility to check if his gun had live ammunition in it? He’s on a movie set. He’s an actor. Why would he even think to ask if a gun he was holding as a fake character had live bullets in it?

Am I missing something?

— K. (@washedupteach) January 19, 2023

Should Baldwin or Gutierrez-Reed be found guilty, juries will choose which of the two manslaughter charges they are guilty of. The more severe charge faces a prison sentence of five years and the lesser charge 18 months.

As viral debates erupt across social media discussing the charges into today, memes and other jokes have also become prevalent online referencing Alec Baldwin, as well as Rust itself. According to reports, the film's production will continue amid the charges, though no release date has been provided still.

After all the stuff with Alec Baldwin imagine the Rust movie comes out and it's absolutely shit.

— Count Dankula (@CountDankulaTV) January 20, 2023