A made-for-TV movie about a shark-infested tornado wreaking havoc on a Los Angeles fishing port has been defended by one of the show's stars.

Sharknado, which aired on the Scyfy channel in America late last week, stars former Beverly Hills 90210 star Ian Ziering and American Pie starlet Tara Reid.

The trailer shows Ziering shooting sharks out of the sky, and chainsawing a shark in half, but the actor says it is "the perfect summer movie".

"It has so many different levels. First of all, there's sharks and then there's love triangles and unrequited love ... There's a government slant on it as well. There's some comment on global warming," Ziering told the Hollywood Reporter.

The film proved popular with 1.4 million viewers and tens of thousands of social media comments.

Ziering said he was up for a sequel and he'd like Quentin Tarantino to direct it.

"Everything that he does it so visceral and so gritty and so honest. I'd like to see his spin on something like this, and I'd love to work with him in some capacity."

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- nzherald.co.nz