‘Sharknado 2’ sparks social media storm, nets big ratings for Syfy

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The ratings are in, and they’re better than last year’s: “Sharknado 2” now ranks as Syfy’s most-watched original movie ever with 3.9 million total viewers and 1.6 million in the advertiser-coveted demographic of adults ages 18 to 49.

The sequel to last summer’s surprise social-media phenomenon delivered 1 billion estimated impressions for “Sharknado” Twitter conversations, the cable network reported Thursday.

At one point, “Sharknado 2” netted all top 10 trending topics in the United States. There were more mentions of “Sharknado” on Twitter than #MileyCyrus on the day of MTV’s 2013 VMAs, #kimye on Kim and Kanye’s wedding day and #transformers4, #thelegomovie, #godzillamovie and #22jumpstreet on each movie’s worldwide premiere day, according to the network, which added that “Sharknado 2” is the most social movie on TV ever — more social than any episode of “Game Of Thrones,” “The Bachelorette” or “Survivor.”

In addition to the social media storm, Sharknado 2 soared 183 percent among total viewers and 190 percent among adults 18-49 compared to the first “Sharknado” movie premiere on July 11, 2013. (Last night’s movie bested the likes of broadcast networks’ “Extant” (CBS) and “So You Think You Can Dance” (Fox) in the key demo.)

Syfy will unleash Sharknado 2 again at 6 p.m. (CDT) Saturday and 8 p.m. Sunday.

The folks at TiVo compiled a list Thursday of the movie’s most-watched moments, based on TiVo users’ rewinding and rewatching on their video recorder set-top boxes.

“Sharknado 2” Top Moments (Central time):

8:03 p.m.

Flying to New York on Santa Mira Airlines (a shout out to the fictional town that served as the setting for “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” and “Halloween 3”), Fin (Ian Ziering) looks out the window to see a shark flying in the clouds.

8:09 p.m.

As sharks pummel the plane and the pilot (Robert Hays of “Airplane!”) gets sucked out of the cockpit, passenger Wil Wheaton is eaten by a shark flying down the aisle.

8:45 p.m.

Fin’s sister, Ellen Brody (the name of Roy Scheider’s wife in “Jaws”) disarms a shark with a stun gun while it munches on her friend’s face (horror movie scream queen Tiffany Shepis).

9:58 p.m.

A homeless man (“Howard Stern Show’s” Benjy Bronk) holds a sign saying “The end is near.” Turns out he’s prescient: a flying shark eats him.

9:57 p.m.

With sharks plummeting from the sky, New York denizens grab any weapon they can find to fight back, while Fin uses his chainsaw in midair to slice and dice the bloodthirsty creatures. He’s once again swallowed whole, sawing his way to safety.

RELATED:

A complete guide to the sequel’s myriad celebrity cameos, in order of appearance

— Heads up: Get your “Sharknado 2” bingo cards here

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