A few years ago actor Michael Moriarty was called to a meeting with u.s. Attorney General Janet Reno. He thought it was a photo op ­ ‘Attorney General meets da from Law and Order.’

In fact, Reno was there to discuss violence on television and when the first thing she said to Moriarty and the assembled group of high-ranking nbc executives was, ‘I find it hard to believe that anyone in the entertainment industry could shed a tear over anything,’ it began a series of events that eventually prompted the Emmy, Golden Globe and Tony award-winning Moriarty to move to Canada and ply his trade here.

For once it seems Canada has gained a major talent at the expense of the American entertainment industry, instead of the other way around.

Speaking from Vancouver where he is playing a guest role as a bounty hunter on the new series Dead Man’s Gun (Dead Man’s Gun Productions), Moriarty possesses a huge presence that is evident even over the phone. Insightful and articulate, the 56-year-old ex-pat talks fondly of his personal and professional experiences here, but becomes most passionate when the conversation turns political.

A staunch civil libertarian, Moriarty’s theories on government’s need to scapegoat television as the reason for youth crime in order to justify civil liberty-destroying drug laws are thoroughly compelling, though some have dismissed his concerns as extremist and paranoid.

Moriarty admits that Canada has never been comfortable with the freedom of speech and fear of big government philosophy that he espouses.

The four-time Emmy nominee for his role as Ben Stone on nbc’s Law and Order now calls the burgeoning film center of Halifax, where his fiancee lives, home.

He finds the work he has been getting in Canada on special permits, granted due to his celebrity status ‘wonderful.’

‘I’ve never been busier, I’m doing what I want to do, I’m a character actor and I’m doing all kinds of different roles.’

Recent Canadian credits include the Salter Street/cbc miniseries Major Crime, the Salter/Cinar Films series Emily of New Moon, and a recurring cameo role on Atlantis’ Psi Factor: Chronicles of the Paranormal, which Moriarty says he created.

When the producers of Psi Factor approached him to play a regular role Moriarty turned it down, saying he d’esn’t believe in the paranormal. ‘There’s a big market for sci-fi, so it (Psi Factor) has ratings. It’s not got the greatest reviews in the world but it has an audience,’ says Moriarty. ‘They wanted me to be a principal member of this paranormal organization inspecting this and that, but I said I really wouldn’t feel at home in that.’

So the Moriarty-created character will be seen in a recurring cameo. ‘He’s a hedonist, he’s an American exile living in Halifax, he’s kind of a hard-drinking, hard-smoking Ralph Nader. His name is Michael Kelly and he sits around his computer and checks how all these corporations are pulling fast ones. He’s a little close to the bone.’

Being an American actor in Canada, Moriarty sometimes contends with resentful Canadian thespians who see him picking up plum roles in an already overcrowded and competitive market.

‘I know, I know,’ he says. ‘You go into the situation where I am invading another workspace and some people feel that, but every time I come on a set I have to earn my dues.’

He calls Canadian actors on par with any country in the world and ranks his experience on Major Crime as one of the most positive of his career. ‘Major Crime was the best director (Brad Turner), best cast and one of the best scripts (Steve Lucas) I’ve ever worked with.’

A major difference that Moriarty has found between the Canadian and u.s. industries is the amount of responsibility Canadian directors are given by producers, who he says have a more ‘hands-off’ approach to production here than in the States.

‘The difference is the producers,’ he explains. ‘The producer of Major Crime, I never saw him. On Law and Order I didn’t always see Dick Wolf but I felt him.

‘It’s a highly controlled atmosphere in the u.s., which certainly demeans the director. In the States to direct for episodic television is a humiliating experience because you’re just a tool and you’re not a director, they don’t care about your vision, they’ll cut it their way and order you around.

‘I really bleed for the directors. Actors are supposed to take orders, but directors sometimes have a vision they’re not allowed to do because they’re not really running the film ­ they’re subcontracting.’

The Canadian directing experience is much more positive, he says. ‘Up here directors who have a vision are much more supported,’ says Moriarty, citing Salter exec producer Michael Donovan’s attitude towards director Turner on Major Crime. ‘Donovan just said, ‘I’ve picked my man, I trust him, let him do it.’

‘Directors in Canada have a lot more freedom and responsibility and that is to the benefit of the production 90% of the time. The director is the one dealing with the second-by-second changes and I think it helps the product on an artistic integrity level.’

Beyond the pay scale variance, Moriarty who left a $1-million-a-year job on Law and Order, says the only other difference in Canada is the demeanor of the crews. ‘They’re a lot less jaded in Canada. The crews enjoy film, enjoy having the job and they work with a cheery disposition. Down in the States they’re always just turning out another one.’

As for his new home base of Halifax, ‘It’s blossoming. They’ve got two new studios. They need to develop a bigger soundstage for adr and they need a developing lab so they don’t have to fly the film to Toronto. They’ve been doing a lot of work here and they’re becoming very adept. I think this town is gonna explode,’ says Moriarty, inadvertently alluding to the town’s infamous 1917 blast.

Moriarty remains aware of his position as an agitator and sees himself as a small thistle in the side of American/Canadian relations. He says he d’esn’t have any complaints with the Canadian government, is a fan of the parliamentary system, and has applied for residency.

He also likes the cbc. ‘I’m very impressed,’ he says. ‘I’ve seen programs which are anti-government. If they were the only station in Canada, now then…’