Connie Britton Almost Walked Away from Her Role on "Friday Night Lights "After Having 'Very Little' to Do in the Film Version
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03/20/2025 04:32 PM
Britton admitted she didn't want to play the "fly-on-the-wall wife character in a football show"
Connie Britton almost said "no thank you" to her iconic character from Friday Night Lights.
The actress, 58, reflected on her time starring on the original drama series during an interview with Paradefor its March cover story. Now synonymous with her character Tami Taylor, Britton revealed that she nearly walked away from the character after her small role in the 2004 Friday Night Lights movie.
Bill Records/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank
Connie Britton in 'Friday Night Lights' in 2010"In the film there was very little for me to do, even less so by the time it came out," Britton shared. "Whatever I had done was mostly on the cutting room floor. When the TV show came around I said, 'No thank you.' "
The drama ran for five seasons and came to an end in 2011. The original Friday Night Lights followed football players and their coach — starring the likes of Taylor Kitsch, Minka Kelly, Jesse Plemons, Michael B. Jordan, Zach Gilford, Aimee Teegarden, Kyle Chandler and Britton — in a rural town in Texas as they navigated their lives on and off the field.
The NBC program was inspired by H. G. Bissinger's 1990 novel of the same name, which was also adapted into a 2004 film, starring Billy Bob Thornton, Jay Hernandez, Garrett Hedlund and Tim McGraw and Britton, among others.
Related: Friday Night Lights Reboot in the Works 13 Years After the Hit Show's Finale Aired
After starring in the 2004 film, Britton shared that she wanted more than "playing the fly-on-the-wall wife character in a football show."
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Ultimately Peter Berg, writer and creator of the show, was very persuasive toward the The White Lotus alumna.
As she recalled, Berg told her, " 'Women are important in these communities and we didn't get a chance to show that in the film and this is our opportunity to show it in the TV show.' "
Virginia Sherwood/NBC
Connie Britton as Tami Taylor, Kyle Chandler as Coach Eric Taylor on 'Friday Night Lights' in 2011Britton acknowledged that it was a big risk for her to take, but it ultimately paid off. She also shared that her work with Chandler, 59, who played her husband and the beloved Coach Taylor, was "lightning in a bottle."
"I could have never imagined that I would find this acting partner who had the same aspirations for the kind of couple that we wanted to portray and was willing to commit to that so deeply," Britton shared.
While there has been talk of a Friday Night Lights reboot, Britton has previously shared she won't be included. She told Parade that it is "barely on her radar." However, she said she hopes the new cast will find a "sense of discovery there in terms of what they're committing to and trying to accomplish."
