FCC Chairman Ajit Pai does not have a fan in Star Wars actor Mark Hamill.
The actor, best known for playing Luke Skywalker, was less than amused by the video Pai released last week, in which he dressed up as Santa and explained the “seven things you can still do on the Internet after net neutrality.”
In an attempt to resonate with young audiences, Pai reassured viewers that they could still “gram” their food, post photos of puppies, and binge watch their favorite shows, by hammily depicting himself partaking in those activities.
Read: Net Neutrality Explained: What It Means (and Why It Matters)
While Hamill took issue with the entire video and its support for repealing net neutrality, he particularly picked up on Pai’s use of a lightsaber in the video. In a tweet, Hamill called the FCC chief “profoundly unworthy” of wielding a lightsaber, noting that “A Jedi acts selflessly for the common man-NOT lie 2 enrich giant corporations.”
Cute video Ajit "Aren't I Precious?" Pai 🤮-but you are profoundly unworthy 2 wield a lightsaber-A Jedi acts selflessly for the common man-NOT lie 2 enrich giant corporations. Btw-did you pay John Williams his royalty? @AjitPaiFCCorpShill #AJediYouAreNOT pic.twitter.com/SpIcOEySUY
— Mark Hamill (@MarkHamill) December 16, 2017
Hamill also questioned whether Pai had paid Star Wars theme song composer John Williams the royalties for use of the song in his video. Fittingly, Hamill ended his tweet with the hashtag #AJediYouAreNOT.
At this point, Senator Ted Cruz entered the fray and responded to Hamill on Twitter, saying, “Luke, I know Hollywood can be confusing, but it was Vader who supported govt power over everything said & done on the Internet. That’s why giant corps (Google, Facebook, Netflix) supported the FCC power grab of net neutrality. Reject the dark side: Free the net!”
.@HammillHimself Luke, I know Hollywood can be confusing, but it was Vader who supported govt power over everything said & done on the Internet. That's why giant corps (Google, Facebook, Netflix) supported the FCC power grab of net neutrality. Reject the dark side: Free the net! https://t.co/nARkMvIEYk
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) December 17, 2017
Unfortunately, Cruz’s tweet sparked a Twitter fight between actor and senator, who had misspelled Hamill’s name. Despite the misspelling, Hamill saw the tweet and responded in kind, accusing Cruz of “smarm-splaining,” and saying he would “have more credibility if you spelled my name correctly. I mean IT’S RIGHT THERE IN FRONT OF YOU!” He continued, “Maybe you’re just distracted from watching porn at the office again.”
Read: Net Neutrality: The FCC Chair Is Drunk on Ideology
Cruz then accused the actor of responding with anger rather than facts, snarkily asking, “Who was it that said, ‘Fear is the path to the dark side…fear leads to anger…anger leads to hate’?” He then changed tack, sharing another tweet that suggested a “civil discussion of facts” rather than “insults.”
Cruz is one of many conservatives who have defended the FCC’s move repealing net neutrality as a way to decrease the power of big government and increase freedom. Those opposed to the decision fear that it will allow internet providers to control internet speeds and increase prices for services such as Netflix (NFLX).
