‘SHARKNADO‘: Casting gives film even higher profile

Sandy “Pepa” Denton plays her best friend, Billy Ray Cyrus portrays a surgeon, Downtown Julie Brown is a nurse and Biz Markie turns up as a pizzeria owner.

It’s like VH1 Classic threw up all over it.

And it’s casting like that — Perez Hilton, “The Howard Stern Show” writer Benjy Bronk and Daymond John of “Shark Tank” (get it?) also make appearances — that will only serve to give “Sharknado 2” an even higher profile. Unlike the original movie. While talking about “Sharknado” at work shortly before it aired, a colleague thought I was saying “shark NATO,” as though someone had established a version of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization made up entirely of sharks.

That would have been absurd.

As opposed to, say, a tornado made up of sharks.

It’s new to you: Penn & Teller’s 2011 British series, “Fool Us,” in which aspiring magicians tried to create an illusion the duo couldn’t figure out, makes its U.S. debut (8 p.m. Wednesday, KVCW-TV, Channel 33).

Food fight: Jason Zepaltas of Chicago and Scott Commings of Woodstock, Ill., will compete for the title of head chef of Gordon Ramsay Pub & Grill at Caesars Palace in the season finale of “Hell’s Kitchen” (8 p.m. Thursday, KVVU-TV, Channel 5). Contact Christopher Lawrence at clawrence@reviewjournal.com or 702-3804567.-