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Both have attracted a new legion of global fans to Sea Shepherd’s controversial approach of battering whaling and fishing ships.

The tactics have landed him in the legal hot water even as they boost his renown. During an interview with The Associated Press in Paris, Watson — a dual U.S.-Canadian citizen — was stopped four times in the street by fans of all nationalities who asked for autographs.

“The camera is the most powerful weapon we’ve ever invented, so we had to utilize that weapon. That’s why we created the (reality) show,” he said.

France has granted Watson political asylum, shielding him from extradition requests by Costa Rica and Japan on charges that he asserts are trumped up. Watson now lives as an international fugitive in a luxurious 18th-century chateau near Bordeaux.

“It’s not bad,” he said with a smile.

Japan says Watson allegedly masterminded Sea Shepherd’s disruption of Japanese whale hunts in the Antarctic Ocean and thus put whalers’ lives at risk during the hunt.

I left Greenpeace because protesting is submissive. Like ‘Please, please, please don’t kill the whales

Watson’s career has been as stormy as the seas he’s travelled. Co-founder of Greenpeace in 1969, he left the organization eight years later.

“I left Greenpeace because protesting is submissive. Like ‘Please, please, please don’t kill the whales,”‘ he said.

The same year he founded Sea Shepherd with the mantra using “aggressive non-violence” to protect marine life.

“We’ve never caused a single injury to anyone but all the stories of ramming ships are true,” he said, his eyes sparkling.