Ian Ziering on a "Sharknado" sequel, "Beverly Hills, 90210" reunion
Ian Ziering says there could be a major storm headed for the East Coast next summer.
The actor, of course, doesn't mean a real storm, but a "Sharknado," which is expected to take over Manhattan. After Syfy's original film "Sharkando," starring Ziering and Tara Ried, resulted in a social media storm in July 2013, the cable network quickly announced plans for a follow-up. Details, though, are still scarce, according to Ziering, who says he's in talks for the second movie.
"Hopefully they will come to fruition. I would love to do the movie,” Ziering told CBS News. "I don't know if there's a script as of yet. Time will tell. It's guerrilla filmmaking at its finest -- very low budget, very fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants filmmaking."
That guerrilla nature is part of what made the sci-fi film such a hit. When the movie -- about a freak shark-filled hurricane taking over Los Angeles -- premiered over the summer, Ziering happened to be doing a guest stint with Chippendales in Las Vegas.
"It just spiraled out of control…When I was backstage at the Chippendales theater, my phone just pretty much bleeped and blurted and alerted itself to death," recalled Ziering. "It was amazing. I thought my phone was possessed for a minute because it wouldn't stop. It just kept vibrating and flashing…600 text messages….It did it until the battery died…I knew that either it was good, or it was bad."
Turns out, it was a positive reaction for Ziering, who catapulted into the social media spotlight within minutes. "It was a pleasant surprise for me because I was bracing for the worst, but of course was always hoping for the best," he said. "We took it seriously. We committed to the material and it was enough that people were able to suspend disbelief and enjoy the fantasy and escape reality to the point where, 'Wow, there's sharks and tornadoes and look how this guy is shooting sharks out of the sky.'"
Ziering said part of the reason he agreed to do the film in
the first place was to help provide for his family. "I had to take one for the team. It was early January. As an actor, my health insurance comes from my unions and in Screen Actors Guild, you have to make so much every year within the union to qualify for the top tier of insurance. And having a baby shortly after that, I realized, 'I have to do this.' I was really upset to be quite honest because the script didn't really read very well. It had holes in it that were left to the imagination for the special effects to fill. And with a low-budget science-fiction film, you never know the level of technology that they have to make the film...But as a husband and a father, no stone goes unturned."
The father-of-two was recently named Daddy of the Year by Daddy Scrubs, a site that offers daddy accessories, apparel and parenting tips. During his visit to CBS News, the proud father of two girls was sporting an "I am the Daddy" baseball T-shirt.
Ziering says he's a proactive dad, explaining, "We're living in a society where you need to be accountable for your actions, for your behavior -- for yourself. To sit back and be reactive would be to allow your children to make big mistakes without the benefit of your wisdom being bestowed on them. It's not what my parent taught me."
Looking ahead to 2014, Ziering will have a lot on his plate. He's planning to do another guest turn on the Chippendales stage and is also the midst of working on a "docu-follow" -- a TV series, focusing on how the "journeyman actor deals with the ups and downs of the entertainment industry."
"With all the cable and Internet channels you have available, you have so much opportunity. If you want to say something, you can say it and have people see it," he said.
Meanwhile, Ziering says he would be open to taking part in a "Beverly Hills, 90210" reunion. The actor, who rose to fame on the hit '90s series, says he and his fellow castmates actually tried to organize at TV special in 2010 -- on Sept. 2, 2010, to be exact, or 09/02/10. And although it didn't work out at that time, Ziering said he wouldn't rule out a reunion in the future.
Until then, the long-term forecast could be calling for a "Sharknado" in New York City next summer. So watch out.
And check out the video above for more on Ziering's parenting philosophy and the making of "Sharnkado," including the chainsaw scene, which almost didn't happen. Also find out what Ziering once had planned for a "Beverly Hills, 90210" reunion.
