Science fiction movie fans are eagerly anticipating the second instalment in the cult Sharknado films. Sharknado 2: The Second One is due to debut on the Syfy channel on Wednesday July 30th.

Ian Ziering Tara Reid
Tara Reid and Ian Ziering confirmed their involvement in the second Sharknado

Although it’s a classic straight-to-TV movie, the first Sharknado gained a sizeable cult following mainly fuelled through Twitter. The original starred Tara Reid and Ian Ziering, who played a pair of ex-lovers set against the backdrop of a Los Angeles infested with man-eating sharks, after a waterspout had lifted them out of the ocean and dumped them in the city.

The same kind of conceptual territory as Snakes On A Plane, basically. The second film, this time set in New York, was commissioned swiftly, and Reid and Ziering confirming their involvement earlier this year. The sequel has also attracted a host of guest stars: Kelly Osbourne (as a flight attendant), wrestler Kurt Angle (fire officer) and Andy Dick (NYPD officer) have all confirmed their involvement, which is testament to its cult popularity.

Sharknado had something of an edge to it: after it was shown on the Syfy channel in July 2013, demand for it was so high that a one-off theatrical screening was arranged that took $200,000. The film currently holds a rating of 82% on Rotten Tomatoes, the online aggregator of critical opinion, and the same website summarised it as “proudly, shamelessly and gloriously brainless”.

MORE: Our review of the first Sharknado

Ziering and fellow co-star Vivica A. Fox were promoting Sharknado 2 earlier this week at San Diego’s Comic-Con. The film’s title was the result of Twitter contest by the directors asking fans.

Ian Ziering Vivica Fox
Ian Ziering and Vivica A. Fox promoting Sharknado 2 at Comic-Con