As whispers emerge of a potential Friday Night Lights reboot, we must admit there’s only one way we want to be chanting ‘Clear eyes, full hearts, can’t lose’ again, and that’s with the return of Coach Taylor (and wife Tami, of course).
Reports reveal Universal Television is working on a new rendition of the beloved noughties series. Sources confirm that the project is in its early stages but has already entered the market. Initial speculation also suggests the series will tell a “new story set in the world of high school football” that will incorporate “new characters.” Frankly, if the series doesn’t feature Coach Taylor (Kyle Chandler), we’re not interested.
With the original cast—Taylor Kitsch, who played Tim Riggins, our beloved bad boy with a secret heart of gold; Jesse Plemons as lovable geek Landry Clarke; Mika Garrity, aka Dillon High’s popular cheerleader Lyla Garrity; and Zach Gilford, also known as underdog quarterback Matt Saracen—past the age of passing for high school students, it’s unlikely we’ll see many, if any, of them return. But, as we all know, it’s Coach Taylor and his wife, Tami, played by the inimitable Connie Britton, who were the heart and soul not only of Dillon football but also of the show.
It wouldn’t be a stretch, in our opinion, to see Eric Taylor still doing what he does best: sending inspirational shivers down our spines as he delivers one of his famous pre-game pep talks before chanting, “Clear eyes, full hearts, can’t lose.” The mere thought has us burning with excitement.
In the original series, Julie, the daughter of the Taylors, perfectly connected the ongoing high school drama off the football field. Fans will recall Eric and Tammi had a second daughter on the show who was just a baby for the series but could, 13 years on, be of high school age—a perfect way to connect back to the original show, if you ask us.
For now, we’ll have to wait and see what becomes of the Friday Night Lights reboot, but if any TV execs are reading this, we’ve made our demands clear. Friday Night Lights fans get ready for a new generation to live by the motto: “Clear eyes, full heart, can’t lose.”
Multiple reports indicate that Universal Television is in talks to reboot the critically acclaimed drama. Puck initially broke the news. Sources reported on Thursday, November 14, that the series’ original creators, Jason Katims, Pete Berg, and Brian Grazer, are involved in the project. The new adaptation is currently in the early stages.
High school football will continue to be the setting for the new series. The reimagined show will focus on new characters rather than the previous cast. Friday Night Lights premiered in 2006 and told the story of a high school football team in a small Texas town. It was initially based on H.G. Bissinger’s book and a 2004 film of the same name. The TV show had an all-star cast that included Kyle Chandler, Connie Britton, Taylor Kitsch, Jesse Plemons, Minka Kelly, Aimee Teegarden, Michael B. Jordan, and more. Friday Night Lights went on for five seasons before it wrapped up for good in 2011.
Since the show ended, there have been talks about a potential reboot or a new film adaptation. Grazer previously revealed that there were discussions about a potential movie. “We’re working on another Friday Night Lights movie in Del Rio, Texas, in a border town that takes place in 2015,” the producer said in a 2021 interview with Collider. “We hope to be making that in the beginning of next year.” Grazer teased that the big-screen project could lead “into a new series that takes place in a more recent time.”
While Friday Night Lights fans have been hopeful to see the series return at some point, Britton, 57, was skeptical. Previously, she expressed her inability to envision a reboot of the show featuring the original stars. “We’ll do a reunion for sure, like a cast reunion, but I don’t see them going back into that story, at least with this cast,” the actress said in a July 2021 interview with Entertainment Tonight.
A few years ago, there were rumors that they were planning to remake Friday Night Lights. Now, given that we’ve already produced a movie and a TV show, the idea of revisiting it with a completely new version remains uncertain. I would think that would be sort of odd.”
However, other stars have expressed their interest in possibly returning. Zach Gilford would agree to one condition. “What made that show was its authenticity,” Gilford, 42, exclusively said in May. “As long as the storyline didn’t contrive to bring a number of the characters back together, I’m all for it.”