Daisy Ridley explains her Ted Cruz feud to Jimmy Kimmel

Senator Ted Cruz is used to late night hosts like Jimmy Kimmel taking shots at him. But it was one of Kimmel’s celebrity guests that became the latest to roast the Texas Senator. Daisy Ridley explained the back-and-forth between her and Sen. Cruz last night on Jimmy Kimmel Live!.

Dating back to at least his failed 2016 bid for the White House, Ted Cruz has been a punchline in the world of late night television. Hosts like Stephen Colbert, Seth Meyers, and Trevor Noah have made countless jokes at his expense. Even characters like Triumph the Insult Comic Dog have had fun at Cruz’s expense. But Cruz was always a minor character in the circus of the past four years.

With former President Donald Trump fading from the spotlight, Cruz has intentionally or unintentionally stepped into that void. His efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election followed by his ill-advised trip to Mexico have skyrocketed Cruz to the top of late night’s list of favorite targets.

Now, it’s not just late night comedians putting Cruz in his place. After the Senator defended actress Gina Carano for being fired from The Mandalorian, his shot at Star Wars’ most recent Jedi earned a response from actress Daisy Ridley. Ridley explained the situation last night on Jimmy Kimmel Live!:

Daisy Ridley had plenty of support after responding to Ted Cruz

It was predictable that Ted Cruz would defend Gina Carano and call out “cancel culture.” It is a hot button issue right now and an easy way to score points with a certain population. But Cruz makes the mistake of referring to Ridley’s character Rey as “an emotionally tortured Jedi,” apparently as an insult.

It was a decision that Cruz likely regretted after Ridley dunked on the Senator when asked to respond. The British actress referenced Cruz’s Mexico vacation, stating that she is “happy to be an emotionally tortured Jedi who doesn’t leave their state when it’s having a terrible time.”

Ridley told Jimmy Kimmel that she immediately regretted her response, worried that people would be upset she was commenting on American politics. But a few messages from Stars Wars: The Rise of Skywalker director J.J. Abrams and actor Josh Gad proved that Ridley had plenty of support.

Ridley’s diss probably stung Cruz even a bit more than usual considering he’s a Star Wars fan. At least he seems to be one after trying to make a Star Wars analogy during a recent speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference. Predictably, it landed flat and made for perfect monologue fodder for Stephen Colbert.

It seems to be part of a trend for Ted Cruz. Anytime he speaks in public or takes to Twitter to try to win an argument, he is quickly shot down by late night comedians, Jedi, and just about everyone else paying attention.

What do you think about this “feud” between Daisy Ridley and Ted Cruz? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.