Regardless of the original Sharknado‘s iffy ratings, the Syfy Channel has given the OK to produce Sharknado 2, largely in part due to the unusual amount of social media attention the first movie received.
When the film premiered on TV just weeks ago, it generated more social media attention than TV Shows The Big Bang Theory and Big Brother, according to The Daily News. Celebrity fans include B.J. Novak (The Office) and “Lost” creator Damon Lindelof, who tweeted that he is “going to write the Sharknardo sequel and… do it before Sharknado is over”.
Just days before his overdose, Glee star Cory Monteith tweeted about the movie as well, joking, “What the crap is Sharknado?”
While few details have been released on the sequel except its location and that there will be one, Thomas Vitale, executive vice president for programming, said in a statement, “We’ll be announcing more details very soon. But we didn’t want our fans to worry they wouldn’t get their fill of more shark fin, I mean, fun next year.”
When asked by TMZ live if she’d be up for a sequel, Tara Reid, star of Sharknado, said, “Why not?”
Reid said of the film, “This movie [Sharknado] was so ridiculous, you know? Like it’s almost so bad that it’s good.” Not sure how Syfy responded when they heard the star of the film said this, but one can assume they weren’t pleased.
Anthony C. Ferrante (Headless Horsemen), who directed Sharknado, the original, said to The Hollywood Reporter that “he definitely sees a sequel in the forecast” and he’d “love to come back”.
It’s quite shocking how quickly this movie has picked up a cult following for its ridiculousness, almost like Tommy Wiseau’s The Room. It’s one of those movies that you watch and can’t help but think, “Is this supposed to be funny?”
In light of the social media blowout, Syfy is using twitter fans to come up with the sequel, or possibly prequel’s, tagline, using the hashtag #Sharknado. Any suggestions?