Once a year, humans across the United States shy away from work and other usual behaviors to bunker down and watch as many hours of Discovery’s Shark Week as possible. It’s a desire that both celebrities and non-celebrities share, and this year Discovery has signed on a few celebs that you might expect and a few you might not to host the network’s late night talk show Shark After Dark. The 2014 list includes Ashley Tisdale, Tara Reid, Matt Walsh and many, many more.
The full list is a little more extensive than two blondes and a really funny dude. According to Deadline, Chelsea Handler, Jake Johnson, Damon Wayans Jr., Danny Trejo, Robert Rodriguez, Stone Cold Steve Austin and more will be joining the Shark After Dark lineup when it launches on Sunday, August 10. Just like last year, Josh Wolf will host, and Tom Green and Bob Oschack will pop up to play alien Blurb and Bob the Shark, respectively.
Reid’s the obvious given on the list. She’s appeared on Shark After Dark in the past, and she’s one of the key people involved with Syfy’s Sharknado franchise, the most recent of which, Sharknado 2, absolutely crushed in the ratings. It’s fitting that she’d also appear in a lineup dedicated to one of the Earth’s most interesting creatures. On the other hand, it’s always interesting to see how directors, Disney Darlings, actually shark experts, comedians, wrestlers, talk show hosts and more can find some common ground in Shark Week. It’s programming that brings people together.
Honestly, Shark After Dark is pretty alright, but for Shark Week’s 27th anniversary, Discovery is pulling out all the stops. There’s going to be a program about bioluminescent sharks in the Indiana Ocean, as well as plenty of educational programming sporting not-so-educational titles like Zombie Sharks and Spawn of Jaws 2: The Birth. We’ve put together a breakdown of the stuff the network has coming up, although I personally feel that part of the joy of watching Shark Week is sitting down and getting sucked into whatever my HD TV has to offer. The lengthy list of new programming is an initiative that has carried over from last year’s Shark Week, when Discovery upped its game from 3 new programs to 11 brand new additions to the week-long lineup.
In many ways Shark After Dark embodies everything Shark Week is for audiences: interesting, funny and more than a little strange. If it’s something you’ve never experienced firsthand, you can catch this year’s kickoff on August 10 at 8 p.m. ET.
