US President Donald Trump’s planned movie tariffs have been criticised by Australia’s ambassador to Washington who told a gathering of business leaders he opposed a “tax on Bluey”.

“I don’t think we want to see a tax on Bluey,” the former prime minister said.

“What happens if we all lock down our countries with competitive, punitive arrangements against each other’s movies?

“Movies are the way in which we kind of understand each other more. So I’d be all for opening this up.”

In what he said was a move to protect the US film and TV industry, Trump announced this week a plan to impose a 100 per cent tariff on all movies produced overseas.

It’s not at all clear how such a tariff would be imposed.

Films are intellectual property, not goods, so they represent a kind of service that is not currently subject to tariffs.

Rudd also ridiculed the 10 per cent US tariffs placed last month on the Heard and McDonald Islands, an Australian external territory off the coast of Antarctica.

“If you’ve seen the other great Australian movie, Happy Feet – you know, the penguins – those penguins of ours have just been tariffed down in Heard and Macquarie [sic] Island in Antarctica,” he said.

“They’re producing a sequel, it’s called Unhappy Feet. There’ll be a march of penguins on Washington.”

The Milken Institute conference was attended by high-powered business figures, including billionaire and Trump ally Elon Musk.