Director Michael Bay has been charged over the death of a pigeon in Italy

A pigeon was allegedly killed on the set of 6 Underground in Italy where it is illegal to harm or kill wild birds . Photo / iStock

Michael Bay has been charged over the death of a pigeon.

The 57-year-old director has been charged with the killing of a bird in connection to an alleged incident in 2018 when he was filming Netflix movie 6 Underground in Rome, Italy, where it is illegal to harm or kill wild birds.

But sources connected to the production insisted all the homing pigeons used in the movie landed safely during filming.

Italian prosecutors alleged the pigeon was killed by a camera dolly and that someone from the set saw the incident happen, taking photos before reporting it to law enforcement.

"Everyone knows Michael is an animal activist. This would never happen on his set." Photo / Getty Images

Bay isn’t accused of personally killing the bird but is being held responsible for the incident because of his position of director.

He is said to have tried to get the case thrown out several times, and also declined the option to settle the allegations by paying a small fine, insisting he simply wouldn’t plead guilty to harming an animal.

Ryan Reynolds starred in 6 Underground and he previously admitted he feared he was “gonna die” during a car chase scene they shot in Italy for the vigilante blockbuster.

He said: “There’s a car chase in this movie that’s unlike anything else, a ride round Florence that’s totally wild, speeding in a Day-Glo green Alfa Romeo at 150mph (241 km/h) down narrow walkways that should never be used for anything but walking.

“I thought I was gonna die. Weirdly enough, it was Michael Bay’s life that flashed before my eyes. That was strange.”