THE VACCINATOR: COVID-crazy James Cameron leaves US for lockdown-loving New Zealand

Director James Cameron says he prefers to live in New Zealand because of how "sane" it is compared to the United States.

The "Avatar" series director explained during a recent interview that he particularly preferred the New Zealand style of governance during COVID-19, which is when he decided to move there.

'Fortunately, they already had a 98% vaccination rate.'

Buying the farm

Cameron told host Graham Bensinger that he fell in love with the scenery and people of New Zealand while visiting in 1994 and made a promise to himself that he would live there someday. Cameron bought a farm there in 2011 and found himself spending a lot of time in the country in the years to come.

"We came back for Christmas and then COVID hit, and we didn't get back down there. So then I had to move mountains to get our production unit back up and running in New Zealand, and we just decided at that point in time that it was time to make the move as a family," Cameron explained.

Fauci fan

From there, the filmmaker began boasting about New Zealand's lockdowns for COVID-19, praising the country's enforcement.

"New Zealand was — they had eliminated the virus completely. They actually eliminated the virus twice," Cameron claimed. "The third time when it showed up in a mutated form, it broke through. But fortunately they already had a 98% vaccination rate."

At the time, New Zealand was under the rule of socialist Jacinda Ardern, who ran the government with her Labour Party from 2017 to 2023. The country used a four-level alert system for COVID and spent a whole month under forced confinement except for "essential movement."

Legislation included allowing police to use any "reasonable means including force" to ensure compliance, with punishments up to six months in prison.

"This is why I love New Zealand," Cameron continued.

RELATED: Christian children's movie 'David' beats out 'Spongebob' and Sydney Sweeney in box-office shock

Cuckoo for Kiwis

The Canadian-born director then began expressing his disdain for what he felt is Americans' sub-optimal vaccination rates.

"People [in New Zealand] are for the most part sane as opposed to the United States, where you had a 62% vaccination rate, and that's going down, going the wrong direction. Are you kidding me?! Where would you rather live?" he asked Bensinger.

The host stumbled, initially not realizing Cameron was looking for an answer. "Oh! Right," he replied before Cameron jumped in.

"A place that actually believes in science and is sane and where people can work together cohesively to a common goal, or a place where everybody's at each other's throats extremely polarized, turning its back on science, and basically would be in utter disarray if another pandemic appears."

Yes-man

Bensinger spoke up after those comments from Cameron though.

"I mean, the United States is a fantastic place to live."

"Is it?" Cameron challenged.

Seemingly not wanting his podcast to spiral out of control, Bensinger added, "but New Zealand is just stunningly beautiful."

"I'm not there for the scenery. I'm there for the sanity," Cameron reaffirmed.

RELATED: James Cameron explains how a 'Terminator-style apocalypse' could happen

Photo by Marty MELVILLE / AFP via Getty Images

Carbon coper

The interview then shifted to Cameron's farm and his veganism, with the 71-year-old explaining that he grows organic, farm-to-table vegetables for local businesses.

"I don't personally have a problem with GMO per se," Cameron said about his growing techniques. "Other than when you start to couple it with these chemical pesticides and herbicides into an integrated system, it's actually opening the door to a lot of chemistry that shouldn't be in our ... bodies," he said unironically.

Defending his veganism, Cameron concluded that if everyone was "100% plant-based," not only would humanity live with a much smaller "carbon footprint," but the environment and wildlife would be in much better shape.

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!