Friday Night Lights

"Hope comes alive on Friday nights."

Oct 8 2004 PG-13 1h 58m
Action, Drama, Sport

A small, turbulent town in Texas obsesses over their high school football team to an unhealthy degree. When the star tailback, Boobie Miles, is seriously injured during the first game of the season, all hope is lost, and the town's dormant social problems begin to flare up. It is left to the inspiring abilities of new coach Gary Gaines to instill in the other team members -- and, by proxy, the town itself -- a sense of self-respect and honor.

Plot

Odessa, Texas, is a small, town in Texas. Racially divided and economically dying, there is one night that gives the town something to live for: Friday Night. The Permian Panthers have a big winning tradition in Texas high school football, led by QB Mike Winchell and superstar tailback Boobie Miles, but all is not well, as Boobie suffers a career-ending injury in the first game of the season. Hope is lost among citizens in Odessa, and for the team, but Coach Gary Gaines, who believes that "Perfection is being able to look your friends in the eye and know you did everything you could not to let them down", is somehow able to help the team rise up from the ashes and make a huge season comeback. Now on their way to state, the Panthers must go out and be perfect, because they may never matter this much for the rest of their lives.

Written by

Buzz Bissinger, David Aaron Cohen, Peter Berg

Directed by

Peter Berg

Cast

Billy Bob Thornton, Jay Hernandez, Derek Luke

Crew

View crew

Production Countries

United States of America

Production Companies

Universal Pictures, MDBF Filmgesellschaft mbH & Company KG, Friday Night Lights, Imagine Entertainment

Languages

English

Awards

2 wins & 5 nominations total

Trailers
Friday Night Lights Trailer
Scores
# of Votes
68,565
Average Rating
7.2 out of 10
Metascore
70
Popularity
NA