Sharknado

Twitter 2013-07 entertainment peaked Updated 2026-02-10
Early 2010s Massive scale 1.5 billion+ lifetime posts

First documented in July 2013 on Twitter. Reached peak activity at an earlier point and has since moderated to lower-frequency use.

#Sharknado

Viral hashtag for absurdist SyFy disaster movie about tornado full of sharks attacking Los Angeles.

Quick Facts

PropertyValue
Air DateJuly 11, 2013
NetworkSyFy
Tweet Volume387,000+ during premiere
Sequels5 (through 2018)

Origin & Impact

Sharknado premiered as a low-budget SyFy movie on July 11, 2013, but became a cultural phenomenon through social media. Celebrities like Mia Farrow and Damon Lindelof live-tweeted the absurdist film, turning it into Twitter’s most-discussed cable movie of the year.

The hashtag demonstrated how “hate-watching” and ironic appreciation could drive viewership in the social media age. The film’s ridiculous premise—sharks in a tornado—became a meme template. SyFy greenlit five sequels, each with increasingly absurd titles, creating a franchise built entirely on social media virality and self-aware campiness.

  • #SyFy
  • #BadMovies
  • #CultClassic
  • #LiveTweeting

References

Explore #Sharknado

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Related hashtags by year of first appearance — circle size reflects lifetime volume, fade reflects how active each tag still is.