Over the past three years, SyFy's Sharknado movies have spawned many sequels featuring more shark-filled-tornadoes than viewers could ever hope for. The fourth flick, Sharknado 4: The 4th Awakens, premieres on SyFy on July 31, and its title hilariously salutes another famous movie franchise: Star Wars. In an interview with Bustle, Sharknado star Ian Ziering says that Star Wars fans will love Sharknado 4 for more than just its title, which, of course, is a play on Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Part of the fun of the Sharknado series is spotting all the celeb cameos and pop culture references and Ziering, who plays the movie's appropriately-named hero Finn Shepard (a shark joke, but now, a fitting Force Awakens reference), says the new movie has plenty of great nods to Star Wars.
"My character uses a sword that is very similar to Kylo Ren's sword," Ziering says. "Except where his was light sabers, Finn Shepard's sword has chainsaws. There's a couple of other references that will have to be Easter eggs for everyone. I don't want to give too much out, because that is part of the fun of the movie." It's clear from the Sharknado 4 trailer, though, that the Star Wars influence is strong. The trailer opens with a text crawl in the same style as Star Wars and ends with April (Tara Reid) showing off a new gadget in her prosthetic hand: a light saber. "May the force be with you," she says. Even the Sharknado 4 logo and key art are clearly inspired by the Star Wars franchise.
The trailer also includes cameos from Las Vegas staples like Wayne Newton and Chippendales dancers, comedian Carrot Top, Motley Crue's Vince Neil, and Finn suited up in an Iron Man-like suit, all in the name of fighting off more Sharknadoes. Since the first Sharknado movie premiered in 2013, the films have gained popularity for their tongue-in-cheek humor, outrageous shark tornado visual effects, many celebrity cameos, and campy summer fun, and clearly, Sharknado 4 will be no exception. Fans are excited to see the latest film the franchise has to offer, and enthusiasm for the series is so high that even its stars are baffled. "I couldn't have imagined this," Ziering says regarding the success of the franchise. "I think it's because SyFy fans are the most supportive fans in all of entertainment and, because the movie does deliver, that excitement spills over into the mainstream of entertainment."
Ziering adds that Sharknado 4 is premiering at the right time, giving viewers a much-needed distraction from the summer news cycle. "Now, when it's the middle of the summer on a Sunday night, at a time when, the world is so fed up with turning on the news and seeing all the turmoil that goes on, and here in the United States, all the political stuff — it's a complete break from all of that," he says about the new movie. "Thoroughly and completely entertaining and fun."
It sounds like Sharknado 4 will be the most fun romp yet. Personally, I can't wait to who and what pops up throughout the movie's toothy twisters.
Images: Tyler Golden (2)/Syfy