Is Marc Maron about to become a Canadian? According to the comedian and podcaster, he is in the process of applying for permanent residency and has plans to move to Vancouver or Toronto.
In this week's episode of WTF with Marc Maron podcast, he spoke with Mark Ruffalo, who is currently applying for Italian citizenship. Maron noted that he's currently applying for permanent residency in Canada.
Maron has been talking about this plan for some time now. Last year, he appeared on the podcast Canadaland to discuss his plans to Vancouver (or possibly Toronto). "I used to think it's kinda like America only without the fear, without the anxiety permeating every part of the environment. And I think that's kinda true," he said. "As time went on, I grew to believe it was boring. And then something started to shift after Trump, and after the chaos started here, and I became older — as soon as I came to Canada, within 20 minutes of being off the plane, it was like, 'Oh my god, the cancer isn't here.' I felt a tangible, physical relief that lasted."
Canadaland host Jesse Brown pushed back against the idea that Canada is like a nicer, more progressive version of the US, but Maron maintained his stance that Canada lacks the tension of his home country.
He said, "Fundamentally, when you don't have a culture based on guns and everybody gets at least basic healthcare — it might not happen promptly, and it might not happen in time, but it's there — so I think that, somehow or another, your sense of mortality and existential dread changes."
He added that "the sense of capitalism infused in every waking second of one's day" is "not culturally endemic to Canada," thanks to public healthcare.
Maron said that he was told his permanent residency application would take two to three years to be processed, so he likely won't be able to move to Canada in the immediate future. Hear that episode of Canadaland below.
Way back in 2011, long before initiating the process of moving to Canada, Maron told Exclaim! how much he loved the country. He said, "I always like Canada a lot. I never feel like something horrible is gonna happen on the street. The people are always very nice. I like Vancouver, it's a beautiful city, and Toronto and Montreal. And Winnipeg, I feel like they're a little stranded out there, but I like the people and I always feel really safe. I think that Canada is socially a lot calmer than here. I know there's gonna be drunk people, but I don't feel like I'm gonna get shot or something's going to spin horribly out of control. Even when people are drunk, there seems to be a core politeness. I can feel menace in a room, and I don't feel that up there."
