A porn actor wanted for allegedly murdering a co-worker with a samurai-style sword has died after jumping from a cliff edge following a stand-off with law enforcement, police said.

Stephen Hill plunged around 50 feet off a sheer rock face after being stunned with a taser by Los Angeles Police Department officers, who had been negotiating with him for several hours.

Television footage of the incident showed Hill scrambling off the edge of the cliff feet first as police moved in after stunning him.

"He jumped down off the cliff after he was tased," LAPD spokesman Bruce Borihanh said.

Hill was wanted for one count of murder and five counts of attempted murder after attacking colleagues at a pornographic film distribution company warehouse in Los Angeles on Tuesday.

Today's dramatic denouement began when police received a tip-off that Hill had been spotted at a property in the San Fernando Valley.

Hill was discovered at the property and was cornered by officers at the edge of a steep cliff adjoining the house, where he had threatened to kill himself, police said.

Local television footage showed the actor holding a samurai sword and shouting at police to keep their distance.

Hill, who has appeared in several porn films under the stage name Steve Driver, is alleged to have murdered fellow actor Herbert Wong at the warehouse-style offices of Ultima DVD on Tuesday.

Wong, who had appeared in two films with Hill under the name Tom Dong, died as he tried to help other staff to escape, the company's owner said.

Hill's rampage appeared to have been triggered by the discovery that he was about to be fired and evicted from the office where he had been living, according to local media reports.

- AFP