As much as I enjoy watching cheesy movies, I can't bring myself to watch or review any films in the Sharknado franchise. That's because they aren't really films. They're just a business strategy, a crass commercialization of the "so bad its good" paradigm. And while many exploitation movies were created for the sole purpose of making a quick buck, the joy in watching those movies comes from discovering the artistry that the film makers managed to sneak in despite having little to no budget to work with. There is no artistry in the Sharknado movies. They are soulless corporate entities.
And that's why I'm happy to report that SyFy's recent airing of Sharknado 4: The Fourth Awakens earned the lowest ratings of any of the Sharknado sequels, showing that audiences might be wising up to the con.
Zap2it.com reports that the premiere of Sharknado 4 on the SyFy network July 31st earned a 0.8 rating among viewers 18 - 49, translating to 2.77 million viewers, down from the 2.8 million viewers who watched the premiere of Sharknado 3. It's a small but significant decline given how aggressively these movies have been marketed.
The down side: Sharknado 4 was still the fifth highest rated cable program on July 31, and actually had the highest number of viewers of any cable program that day.
So will there be a Sharknado 5? According to Screen Rant, there's already a contingency to make a fifth, sixth and SEVENTH movie in the series. But while the fourth movie ended with a cliffhanger, it doesn't guarantee that these movies will be put into production. According to Sharknado screenwriter Thunder Levin ("Thunder"? Really?), "I guess it depends on the ratings." And there has been no word so far from SyFy or production company The Asylum as to whether the declining ratings are still strong enough to keep supporting the franchise.
But if it does happen, I'll make it my civic duty warn you about it.
Films on trial for crimes against humanity, decency, and general good taste.
