At this point in the story of the internet, it’s essentially routine for trolls on social media to capitalize on news events to spread fake, racially motivated, or anti-progressive rumors. This fake trolling has the effect of distorting reality, catering to middle America’s worst fears about people of other races and political beliefs, and making progressive political movements seem more extreme than they actually are.

And now, it could have an effect on the opening-weekend box office for Marvel’s long-awaited Black Panther.

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On social media, racist trolls are currently attempting to fake a battle that isn’t happening by stealing photos, many of assault victims, from various parts of the internet and claiming they’re evidence of attacks by black moviegoers during Thursday night showings of Black Panther.

In one tweet, Twitter user Hardcorial stole selfies which were shared online in 2016 by a woman attempting to speak out about her abuse. The Twitter user claimed to have been “brutally attack” [sic] by “black thugs” while attending, “because they said whites weren’t allowed to watch the movie.” This never happened.

Another troll used a screencap of actor Steven Yun in a scene from The Walking Dead:

My friend and I went to the #BlackPanther premier and he was brutally beaten for “not belonging there” by an angry group who did not have tickets. Very sad, night ruined pic.twitter.com/Con2bmU2Ag — . (@WHIT3IV3RS0N_) February 16, 2018

The images being used to perpetrate the hoax occupy a wide range. One troll tweet used a random clip of K-Pop group BlackPink; another used fictional images from a 2013 Serbian video meant to raise awareness of domestic violence.

But most fakes seem to be co-opting images of real violence. As documented in this tweet, one now-suspended Twitter account used a viral photo from January of a Swedish woman who was brutally attacked after resisting sexual assault; another since-suspended account used a stock image of a bloodied paper towel. Another Twitter user claimed to have witnessed an assault at the movie:

“Went to the #BlackPanther premier tonight and my wife was assaulted. Three black women approached us and one said “This movie ain’t for you white b****” and then attacked her. Security escorted us to the parking lot and we left. We just wanted to see a movie.”

The photo the troll used to illustrate the tweet, however, was a photo of Colbie Holderness, the ex-wife of former White House staffer Rob Porter, who resigned following accusations of domestic abuse. The photo was documentation of Porter’s alleged battery of Holderness while they were married.

Naturally, the fake trolling has since spawned parody trolling — the Walking Dead tweet above may also be an example of this — a hopeful sign that these false accusations of racially motivated violence toward white Black Panther viewers are being recognized for the lies they are.

Was at the #BlackPanther premiere but a group of black youths said this movie wasnt for spoilt milk Mayo crackers ...I am white. They then proceeded to assault me. Im heading to the ER now.Z pic.twitter.com/qilUc5kCbe — freeponyrides (@3freeponyrides) February 16, 2018

However, as BuzzFeed noted, at least one troll has also tried to reverse the tactic by claiming a fake assault by white men “in MAGA hats” at a showing of the movie, which is also a lie.

Meanwhile, there seems to be a real fear on the part of some moviegoers that black viewers could be targeted by white supremacists while attending the film.

I want y’all to be extra careful in the theaters this weekend. CAREFUL. — Questlove Gomez (@questlove) February 16, 2018

Black people around the United States, be very very careful at these movie screenings for Black Panther. These white supremacists are emboldened by this #NikolasCruz terror attack #practiceyour2ndamendmentrights — Tariq Nasheed (@tariqnasheed) February 15, 2018

This fear is not coming out of nowhere: Black Panther’s opening weekend follows the deadliest school shooting in five years. In 2012, a mass shooting occurred at an Aurora, Colorado, movie theater during the opening weekend of The Dark Knight Rises. And in a tense and ideologically polarized moment, Black Panther, a movie set in the fictional African nation of Wakanda, is becoming heavily politicized.

Black Panther is already breaking box-office records, and its success could be a game changer for films with diverse casts built around black leads. It’s possible the trolling is an attempt to scare people away from the theaters and cut into the movie’s bankroll — or it could be yet another example of trolling being used to create a disruptive and ever-more-extreme political environment.

That’s why it’s good to get in the habit of being skeptical online. Always stop and do a reverse image search on any incendiary or inflammatory image you run across online, especially if it seems too awful (or too good) to be true. A reverse image search allows you to look up the original source for an image, if it previously existed on the internet.

Google’s reverse image search is the most popular, and if you’re using Google’s Chrome browser you can easily perform such a search by right-clicking on any image you see while browsing the web. Another popular reverse image search is Tin Eye, which will let you search stock image databases and can help you identify the earliest-known source for a photo.

So put on your critical thinking cap and don’t let the trolls scare you. Black Panther, currently sitting at a 98 percent critical approval rating at Rotten Tomatoes, is by all accounts worth the trip to the theater.

Update: This article has been updated to reflect that previous reports that the Parkland shooter was a white supremacist appear to have been false.