By JAN LARSON McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
When the director of “Sharknado” saw a story pop up on his feed about a dog named after his movie at the Wood County Humane Society, he immediately saw the connection between his movie and the dog that needed at home.
Anthony Ferrante’s first “Sharknado” film was a true “underdog,” he said – similar to the homeless dog named after the sci-fi disaster film.
“Well, we gotta help this guy,” Ferrante said, hoping the canine would see a similar outcome as the movie, which has become a cult classic. “We kind of succeeded against all odds.”
So last week, after spotting the plight of Sharknado the dog, Ferrante reached out to the Wood County Humane Society to offer his help. The director took to his Twitter account offering an autographed Blu-Ray of the original “Sharknado” to the dog’s adopters.
Sharknado the dog quickly found a home.
“He’s the cutest dog ever. I posted all his photos on Twitter,” including the photos of the dog decked out in a shark costume, Ferrante said. “Everybody fell in love with him.”
The adopting couple wasn’t aware of the online sensation Ferrante helped to create for Sharknado, but it turns out they are huge science fiction fans and were excited for this connection, said Erin Moore, Wood County Humane Society shelter manager.
Since Sharknado was adopted so quickly, Ferrante asked if the humane society would consider it Sharknado Weekend here. So in honor of both Ferrante and Sharknado, the humane society continued its dog adoption special for the weekend, Moore said.
“This is not just about this animal, it’s about helping all animals. Hopefully it brought some attention to the other animals in Bowling Green,” Ferrante said. “I felt like I could offer something to help.”
Ferrante said he is an animal lover. He currently has cats, with one of them named “Boo,” after the first movie he directed.
The director said he isn’t expecting another animal to pop up in his feed with the name of his latest movie. “It’s ‘Zombie Tidal Wave.’ I doubt there will be a dog with that name.”
Since the 2013 airing of the original “Sharknado” movie, the franchise has spawned five sequels, including “Sharknado 2: The Second One,” “Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No!,” “Sharknado: The 4th Awakens,” “Sharknado 5: Global Swarming,” and “The Last Sharknado: It’s About Time.”
Though the original film was not explicitly a comedy, the sequels were more openly comedic in nature.
For those who haven’t viewed the original “Sharknado,” here’s a snapshot of the plot. A cyclone hits Los Angeles, flooding the city with shark-infested seawater. The cast comes across a school bus trapped in the floodwaters and surrounded by sharks. One of the heroes saves the children and bus driver by rappelling down to the bus from a bridge. But later, the bus driver is crushed by a letter in the iconic Hollywood sign.
Three tornadoes develop and absorb the floodwater, turning into shark-filled “sharknados.” The cast tries to stop the threat of the incoming sharknados by tossing bombs into them from a helicopter. Two are destroyed, but they are unable to stop the third one.
As one character fights off a shark that had latched onto the helicopter, she falls out of the helicopter and directly into another shark’s mouth. Ultimately, the hero destroys the last sharknado with a bomb attached to his car and the sharks begin to plummet toward the ground. The hero jumps into a shark’s mouth with a chainsaw and cuts his way out, emerging with the unharmed woman who had fallen into the shark’s mouth from the helicopter.
According to Moore, this is the first time a celebrity has reached out to help find a home for a pet at the humane society. But who knows, maybe the next dog could be named Abby – “Downton Abbey” that is.
