Friday Night Lights | |
---|---|
Intertitle, seasons 4–5 | |
Genre | Sports drama Teen drama Family drama |
Based on |
Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream by H. G. Bissinger |
Developed by | Peter Berg |
Starring |
Kyle Chandler Connie Britton Gaius Charles Zach Gilford Minka Kelly Adrianne Palicki Taylor Kitsch Jesse Plemons Scott Porter Aimee Teegarden Michael B. Jordan Jurnee Smollett Matt Lauria Madison Burge Grey Damon |
Theme music composer | W. G. Snuffy Walden |
Opening theme | Friday Night Lights Theme |
Composer(s) | W. G. Snuffy Walden |
Country of origin | United States |
Original language(s) | English |
No. of seasons | 5 |
No. of episodes | 76 (List of episodes) |
Production | |
Executive producer(s) | Peter Berg Brian Grazer David Nevins Sarah Aubrey Jason Katims Jeffrey Reiner David Hudgins |
Location(s) |
Austin, Texas Pflugerville, Texas |
Cinematography |
Todd McMullen David Boyd Ian Ellis |
Running time | 43 minutes |
Production company(s) |
Universal Media Studios NBCUniversal Television Studio Imagine Television Film 44 |
Distributor | NBCUniversal Television Distribution |
Broadcast | |
Original channel |
NBC The 101 Network |
Picture format |
480i (SDTV) 1080i (HDTV) |
Original run | October 3, 2006 – February 9, 2011 |
External links | |
Website |
Friday Night Lights is an American drama television series based around a high school football team in the fictional town of Dillon, Texas. It was developed by Peter Berg, and executive produced by Brian Grazer, David Nevins, Sarah Aubrey, and Jason Katims, based on the book and film of the same name. The series' primary setting, Dillon, is a small, close-knit community in rural Texas. Particular focus is given to team coach Eric Taylor (Kyle Chandler) and his family, Tami and Julie. The show uses this small town backdrop to address many issues facing contemporary American culture, including family values, school funding, racism, drugs, abortion and lack of economic opportunities.
Produced by NBCUniversal, Friday Night Lights premiered on October 3, 2006, airing for two seasons on the National Broadcasting Company (NBC). Although the show had garnered critical acclaim and passionate fans, the series suffered low ratings and was in danger of cancellation after the second season. To save the series, NBC struck a deal with DirecTV to co-produce three more seasons of the show with each subsequent season premiering on DirecTV's 101 Network after which NBC rebroadcast the series a few months later.[1] The series ended its run on The 101 Network after five seasons on February 9, 2011.[2][3][4]
Though Friday Night Lights never obtained a sizable audience,[5] it was a critical success, lauded for its realistic portrayal of Middle America and deep personal exploration of its central characters. The show appeared on a number of best lists and was awarded a Peabody Award, a Humanitas Prize, a Television Critics Association Award, and several technical Primetime Emmy Awards. At the 2011 Primetime Emmy Awards the show was nominated for Outstanding Drama Series. Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton also scored multiple nominations for the Outstanding Lead Actor and Actress awards for a drama series. Executive producer Jason Katims was also nominated for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series. Both Chandler and Katims won the Emmy in 2011.[6]