Donald Trump threatened to sue Sharknado when they didn't cast him as the president

Trump wasn't the team's first choice, having already approached Sarah Palin with the possibility of playing the head of state

Let's take a moment to descend into some new depths of Donald Trump's pettiness.

Back in January 2015, Trump was asked to play the president in Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No!. He wasn't their first choice, that honour fell to Sarah Palin, but negotiations fell through and producers looked for another ludicrous C-list celebrity who could fill in as the head of state and comfortably share scenes with Tara Reid.

Almost immediately, The Hollywood Reporter states, Trump said yes to the role. "He was thrilled to be asked," commented studio head David Latt.

Talks progressed as far as drawing up a contract, sent to Trump attorney Michael D. Cohen (now under FBI investigation in connection with the Russia inquiry), before the Sharknado team were faced with sudden silence.

The reason? "Donald's thinking about making a legitimate run for the presidency, so we'll get back to you," Latt recalled Cohen saying. "This might not be the best time."

With time running out for the production team, Mark Cuban was instead offered the role, which prompted rather furious response. "Then we immediately heard from Trump's lawyer," recalled Latt. "He basically said, 'How dare you? Donald wanted to do this. We're going to sue you! We're going to shut the entire show down!'"

"I took it personally, but I get it now," he added. "That was my moment of doing business with Donald Trump. And that's Sharknado."

Sharknado 5: Global Swarming will air on Syfy on 6 August.