Friday Night Lights News (Page 3)

In what seems to be growing consensus among executives, the Hollywood writers strike could continue for sometime - but this could mean a faint glimmer of good news for one group of shows: struggling prime-time series.

Very soon the networks will begin running low on original episodes of most shows. Any new episode will become an increasingly valuable commodity.

No network is going to waste paid-for episodes. So the marginal shows will stay on until their episodes run out between now and the end of January.

Thanks to the strike, some marginal shows will surely get to run their full slate of episodes — and perhaps win a shot at coming back next year.

In this group are first-season series like Journeyman and Life on NBC, K-ville and Back to You on Fox, Big Shots on ABC and Cane on CBS.

Some holdovers may also be affected for the better, such as Friday Night Lights on NBC, Men in Trees on ABC, 'Til Death on Fox and Shark on CBS.

A show like Friday Night Lights, for instance, with high critical praise and low ratings, could get a chance to break through in January, when it's likely to be among the few fall series with some new episodes left.

As previously reported, Friday Night Lights started Season 2 production early and producers managed to get 15 episodes completed before the strike.

Continue reading in the New York Times ...

The wardrobe trailer for Friday Night Lights — an 18-wheeler with mirrored doors on the back — is more or less a clotheshorse's dream, reports today's Austin American-Statesman: it's a gigantic walk-in closet.

Professional stylists and costumers buzz around the long racks of clothes, sectioned off by character. The trailer is stationed in the Northeast Austin church parking lot that serves as one of the base camps for the NBC show.

One thing, though. These aren't exactly fashion-forward clothes.

The show, set in fictional Dillon, has won acclaim for its small-town authenticity - in everything from the characters' homes and cars to their wardrobe.

"That's one of the most challenging aspects of our job — not to make people look too hip," costume supervisor Jaimey Sloan says. "Sometimes it's hard to find stuff that looks like they bought it in Dillon, Texas. But at the same time, we have actresses from L.A. who know what's in style."

Kathy Kiatta, a friendly but hurried woman in jeans and Western boots, is among those milling about. The costume designer, Kiatta oversees the characters' looks, from the main cast to those who appear just briefly.

"It's much faster than shooting films," says Kiatta.

To help keep it all straight, every outfit for every scene is logged. Each garment also gets a tag that details which scenes and episodes it's been in, to avoid having the characters wear something two days in a row.

As Kiatta and Sloan think about tomorrow and the upcoming episode, supervisor Taylor Rierden has the current episode on her mind. It's her role to make sure the actors are in the right clothes at just the right time.

Costuming can be a challenging job — but can be a fun, too, of course. One of Kiatta's favorite parts is dressing the character of Brian "Smash" Williams, the Dillon Panthers' cocky running back, played by Gaius Charles.

"I have so much fun shopping for this guy," she says, waving a hand over his rack of jewel-toned, fine-spun button-downs.

They decided Smash, a ladies man with a job at the Alamo Freeze, spends his extra money on clothes. "I get a lot of stuff from (Neiman Marcus) Last Call."

Surveying another character's rack, she shakes her head.

"Poor Matt Saracen is not spending his money on clothes."

With sick Grandma to care for and his dad in Iraq, Saracen (Zach Gilford), the Panthers' quarterback, doesn't have the means nor time to look spiffy.

Continue reading in the Austin American-Statesman ...

Soon, Friday Night Lights and most other shows will go into repeats or hiatus until Hollywood's labor disputes end. How soon? That depends on how the networks play December, typically a month of few viewers and many repeats.

Airing more repeats than usual would take most prime-time series into January, at best. The Los Angeles Times reports that amidst the Writers Guild of America strike, 15 of 22 Friday Night Lights episodes - more than most series expect to complete - will be finished when production shuts down. Stay tuned.

It looks as though the ongoing Hollywood writers' strike could affect the future of Friday Night Lights. The show, among NBC's most acclaimed, is filmed in Austin and brings in $1.5 million per episode to the city.

The show's producers said because of the strike, there is only material written to keep working through December 4. Production would stop then, although there are several additional episodes that have already been written and shot.

NBC would not comment on plans for Friday Night Lights, but it doesn't appear there will be a resolution to the writers' strike anytime soon.

Marching in protest, thousands of television writers and their supporters blocked the road in front of a studio near Los Angeles Friday morning.

"I've spent the last 25 years of my career working with writers, and I understand their grievances in this case, and I don't believe they're being unreasonable, and so I'm here to support that," said actor Kelsey Grammer.

The strike will most certainly affect what people watch.

"I am an empty shell waiting to be filled in by the material written by these folks," said Tonight Show host Jay Leno.

The Tonight Show shut down production in the wake of the strike, and NBC announced Friday they are looking for guest hosts to replace Leno.

Members of the Writers Guild of America said they want residual pay for movies and shows that end up downloaded or offered for free online.

"The backbone of this industry is the people whose faces aren't recognizable, the people trying to get by, make a living and get what's due them," said actor Tim Robbins. "This is simply an issue of fairness."

Network prime time schedules could be reduced to the two R's: reality shows and repeats. There is no sign that contract talks will resume.

The last writers' walkout was in 1988 and lasted more than five months. It cost the industry an estimated $500 million.

A return to the glory years appears to be within reach for the real life Panthers of "Friday Night Lights" fame. Odessa Permian is 9-0 going into its regular season finale, the latest into a season they've been unbeaten since 1993.

"What's happening now has been a thing that's kind of brought back the good old days," said former Permian coach John Wilkins, who went 148-16 with two state titles from 1973 to 1985. "The crowds are coming back."

Odessa Permian won six state championships, three of them in the 1980s when the Panthers lost only 11 games. At that point, the assistant coaches were lured to better jobs and the school's pre-eminence gradually faded.

The last title came in 1991, and the vaunted Panthers lost an unthinkable 49 games in a 10-year stretch from 1997 through last season. That included the longest losing streak in school history, a six-game skid in 2004.

But an Eric Taylor-esque young coach — the only one of 11 since 1959 who also played for the school — is turning things around in this small West Texas city known for two things: oil and football. 

A return to glory: Odessa Permian - the school chronicled in the book "Friday Night Lights" by H.G. Bissinger - is unbeaten going into its season finale.

Last year, in only his second season, Darren Allman led the Panthers to a 9-4 season and a regional semifinal loss to Southlake Carroll, a school with four state titles in five years in Class 5A, the state's largest.

Gary Gaines, one of Allman's predecessors whose 1988 team was depicted in the book of the same name that inspired the movie and series Friday Night Lights, said the 38-year-old Allman has returned the team to fundamentals.

"He just had a little better insight as to what was needed," Gaines said. "He has just put it all together."

Continue reading this article on Permian from MSNBC ...

It's common knowledge that branded entertainment is becoming popular on TV as marketers — worried about how easy it is to avoid commercials -­ arrange for their products to be woven into the plots of shows, reports the New York Times.

Allstate Insurance tried a different angle last Friday, as you might have noticed if you watched Friday Night Lights. You may call it cause-related entertainment, integrating an issue into an episode of a scripted television series.

A plot line in "Backfire," last week's episode of Friday Night Lights, was focused on encouraging teens to drive safely. Allstate has been promoting the cause for months, in traditional advertising efforts like TV commercials and PSAs.

Last Friday, Friday Night Lights viewers did not see a poster about safe driving bearing an Allstate logo on a wall, or an actor playing a local Allstate agent reassuring teenagers that they're "in good hands."

Instead, the issue was brought up through "Backfire" scenes in which a principal cast member, Julie Taylor (Aimee Teegarden) is being taught to drive by her dad, coach Eric Taylor (Kyle Chandler) and her mother Tami (Connie Britton).

After the episode, there was a special Allstate commercial, created by Leo Burnett in Chicago, part of the Publicis Groupe, devoted to teenagers and safe driving. The spot introduced a section of the Allstate Web site about the issue, encouraging both teenagers and parents to sign a safe-driving "contract."

"What we are getting is real," said Lisa Cochrane, vice president for marketing at Allstate in Northbrook, Ill.

Although Allstate has had its agents appear on "It Takes a Thief" on the Discovery Channel, discussing how to thwart identity theft, "this is new" with a scripted show on a big broadcast network, Cochrane said.

Chuck Blomberg, V.P. for central sales at NBC Universal, who lists Allstate among his clients, said the issue "fits really well with the sensibility of Friday Night Lights," a drama in its second season about a Texas high school football team.

The writers of the acclaimed NBC series were asked "not to include Allstate as a brand," Mr. Blomberg said, "but to look at the topic of safe teen driving as something to focus on" and then "weave it into the episode."

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Earlier this week, TV Guide reported that NBC is considering another time slot (and night) change for Friday Night Lights. Determined to get viewers to tune into its critically acclaimed series, NBC is reportedly mulling a move to Monday nights for the West Texas small-town football show.

Specifically, this plan would have Friday Night Lights airing at 10 p.m., following the sci-fi hit Heroes. A lead-in with strong ratings could be just want FNL needs. If you would like to see this Monday move happen - or simply tell NBC how much you love the show, period - contact the network and let your voice be heard!

All you have to do is click here, select Friday Night Lights from the drop down menu, share your comments and hit "send." It only takes a minute of your time. Do what you can to help save this great show and convert more fans! 

Do it for us. For you. For Buddy Garrity. He can't lose his Panthers! 

Last week's ratings didn't bode well for Friday Night Lights. Here are a few notes on the ratings of FNL and other shows from the Orange County Register ...

The swap: The new "Women's Murder Club," starring former "Law & Order" stunner Angie Harmon, racked up huge numbers in its debut - huge for a Friday night, anyway. A rating of 6 is usually enough to win a Friday; "Women's Murder Club" pulled a 7.3. Meanwhile, the male-centered "Big Shots" gives away half of the female-heavy "Grey's Anatomy" audience at 10 p.m. Thursdays. How many weeks until "Women's" takes over for the men?

The flop: ABC promoted the heck out of "Cavemen" before the season, but to little use. The premiere hardly turned in startling ratings - and about 20 percent of the audience didn't bother to come back for week two. It's not as if the competition - "NCIS," "Bones" and "The Singing Bee" can't be beat; "Cavemen" just makes it look that way. Because ABC invested so much capital, "Cavemen" might get a little extra rope, but chances are the show will be extinct soon.

The sadness: Loyal-viewer anguish and critical support helped "Friday Night Lights" get a second season. NBC even did what so many hopefuls had asked: moved the show to Friday nights. This didn't help the ratings, which were about level with season one the first week and fell to "Women's Murder Club" in week two. It doesn't help the case for "Friday Night Lights" that its lead-in, "Deal or No Deal" wins at 8 p.m. while it runs third at 9.

Other notes: NBC had great hopes for "Bionic Woman," but it is settling into a disappointing third in its Wednesday slot, behind "Criminal Minds" and "Private Practice." Meanwhile, NBC's Monday night sci-fi lineup is slipping with "Heroes" way off from last season, and "Chuck" and "Journeyman" third in their slots.

Its numbers weren't exactly high wattage, but NBC's Friday Night Lights opened its second season on a definite positive note on Friday night.

The premiere ("Last Days of Summer") of the critically acclaimed drama, whose first-year ratings made it a tough choice for the Peacock to renew, tied CBS rookie drama Moonlight for its hour's lead among young adults, according to Variety.

Competition for both will pick up this week when ABC enters the fray with new crime drama Women's Murder Club.

Looking at Friday preliminary Nielsen estimates, Friday Night Lights scored a 2.2 rating / 7 share among adults ages 18-49 and 6.5 million total viewers, tying in the key advertising demographic with week two of the new vampire detective drama Moonlight on CBS (2.2/7 in 18-49, 8.3 million).

Repeats of ABC's Private Practice (1.6/5, 4.9 million) and Fox's K-Ville ran farther behind (prelim 1.2/4, 3.3 million).

Honored with a Peabody award and tabbed AFI's program of the year, Friday Night Lights won the hour outright in adults 18-34 (1.7/6) and male demos.

In both 18-49 and total viewers, Friday Night Lights ratings were up 10 percent from its average over the final month of its first season.

As for Moonlight, it's not a juggernaut either, but it managed to hold onto most of its demo lead-in from 8 p.m. winner Ghost Whisperer (2.4/8, 8.7 million) and won the slot by 2 shares in adults 25-54 (3.1/9).

Numbers (2.7/9, 9.5 million) capped the Eye's winning night, up a tick vs. its season preem of a week ago. ABC's 20/20 moved up to second (2.4/8, 7.2 million), with NBC's Las Vegas slipping to third (2.1/7, 7.4 million).

Brian "Smash" Williams takes the handoff.

Crack! A defender immediately levels him.

A confused, angry Smash shakes off the hit and looks around the practice field in defiance. Nearby, an assistant chants, "Hit squad, hit squad," high-fiivng players.

Cut. Actor Gaius Charles, a.k.a. Smash Williams, has some fake sweat applied to his arm and then does the scene all again.

According to the Dallas Morning News, this tackle is as close to real as it comes on television's Texas football-baes series, Friday Night Lights.

And the added layer of sweat is downright unnecessary as intense heat radiates on the Austin set on this September day as the critically acclaimed show fights its way into a second season, which premieres Friday on NBC.

Nothing has been easy for Friday Night Lights, which suffered high expectations and so-so ratings its first season. Cast and crew were left hanging as network execs waited seemingly until the last minute to pick up the show.

"All of us expected to come back," says Scott Porter, who portrays Jason Street, a former star quarterback now in a wheelchair.

"We knew what we'd done quality-wise. We try not to pay attention to ratings, but we know we live in a fast-food world."

A resurgent Jason Street faces bigger challenges in Friday Night Lights' second season as some feeling returns to his hands.

"The new coach calls him the mascot," Mr. Porter says of his character. "He looks at him as handicapped and not as a real person. Street has recurring dreams of walking, and that sends him on a soul-searching journey."

The second-season pickup comes with other changes.

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