Friday Night Lights

PG-13

Released Oct 8, 2004

1 hr. 57 min.

Drama

List

82%

174 Reviews

Tomatometer

85%

100,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

A small, turbulent town in Texas obsesses over their high school football team to an unhealthy degree. When the star tailback, Boobie Miles (Derek Luke), 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 (Billy Bob Thornton) to instill in the other team members -- and, by proxy, the town itself -- a sense of self-respect and honor.

Read More

Read Less

Watch on Fandango at Home

Premiered Nov 14

Buy Now

Fandango at Home

Prime Video

Watch Friday Night Lights with a subscription on Prime Video, rent on Fandango at Home, or buy on Fandango at Home.

Critics Consensus

An acute survey of the football-obsessed heartland that succeeds as both a stirring drama and a rousing sports movie.

Read Critics Reviews

Joel H

When I saw that Friday Night Lights was based on a true story, I expected something monumental to happen during the course of the film. But the story that unfolded was fairly standard. No major plot twists or unusual obstacles occurred, so I kept wondering why this story needed to be told. I was also a little distracted by the cinematography, which was trying to emulate a documentary, and so the camera was constantly panning, tilting, and zooming. And, aside from two or three characters, everyone else felt like a one-dimensional extra. I liked Friday Night Lights, but I guess I just expected more.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/24/24

Full Review

Blu B

A Classic Sports Drama that on the surface doesn't look like anything special and just your run of the mill underdog story weve seen time and time again. What this does is it doesn't focus on throwaway characters and is done in a documentary drama style that showcases a way of life as much as it does a football story that sets it apart. None of the characters are throwaways and showcases the obession, perils, and promises of playing high school ball in the heartland. The music is amazing and super memorable. The editing is good but this is the one part that can be a bit shaky at times. Sometimes it picks up especially in the first half and cuts a bit too fast out of nowhere like it's a Bourne movie for no reason and there really isn't a central character that grounds this which means it is quite jumpy as we go through the key events of the season and how it affects everyone. Which means it can feel like it jumps and stuff just happens a bit but it all does come together in the end. It's crazy how this more about the kids rather than BBT. Besides that everything else is really good. The football scenes are amazing, the drama is really good and heartfelt, and you really do feel like your right with the team all the way. The shaky cam and cinematography style can be a bit dated and obnoxious sometimes but it does work a lot of times especially in the intense drama situations. Anyone who is a fan of the director, any actors in this, or sports dramas will like this a lot.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

01/09/24

Full Review

Alex S

This is my favorite movie!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/07/24

Full Review

Frank P

Good football flick - saw it on a small screen on the seatback in front of me on a Delta flight. Those tackles sounded especially brutal with headphones on.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

11/01/23

Full Review

James B

billy bob thorton and the rest of the cast was great in this film. great soundtrack and i liked the ending. one of the better football movies out there.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

09/13/23

Full Review

Mr Bovine J

Texas HS football is super serious, guys! This is an atrocious film that only displays the worst characteristics of Americans, and then a bizarro happy ending for no reason.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

09/14/23

Full Review

Read all reviews

Post a rating

Peter Berg

Director

Billy Bob Thornton

Coach Gary Gaines

Derek Luke

Boobie Miles

Jay Hernandez

Brian Chavez

Lucas Black

Mike Winchell

Garrett Hedlund

Don Billingsley

Show Less Cast & Crew

Show More Cast & Crew

Friday Night Lights: Official Clip - Coach Gaines on Being Perfect

2:58

Friday Night Lights: Official Clip - Boobie Goes Down

2:41

Friday Night Lights: Official Clip - You're Gonna Seriously Fly, Son

2:26

Friday Night Lights: Official Clip - Boobie Cleans Out His Locker

3:00

Friday Night Lights: Official Clip - Ivory's Pep Talk

0:56

Friday Night Lights: Official Clip - Boobie's MRI

2:48

Friday Night Lights: Official Clip - Creepy Boosters

1:38

Friday Night Lights: Official Clip - Duct Tape for Don

1:58

Friday Night Lights: Official Clip - Agony of Defeat

2:58

Friday Night Lights: Official Clip - Get Off the Field, Dad

1:33

View more videos

95%

93%

Hundreds of Beavers

TRAILER

for Hundreds of Beavers

67%

29%

The Stranger

TRAILER

for The Stranger

50%

92%

The Stolen Valley

TRAILER

for The Stolen Valley

93%

95%

Dune: Part Two

TRAILER

for Dune: Part Two

71%

60%

Immaculate

TRAILER

for Immaculate

82%

75%

In the Land of Saints and Sinners

TRAILER

for In the Land of Saints and Sinners

69%

85%

Sweet Dreams

TRAILER

for Sweet Dreams

56%

85%

DogMan

TRAILER

for DogMan

%

33%

Jimmy Carr: Natural Born Killer

%

%

An American Bombing: The Road to April 19th

TRAILER

for An American Bombing: The Road to April 19th

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

The 8 Best Ways to Turn a Movie into an Amazing TV Series

23 Fresh Movies and TV Shows Streaming on Netflix in April

Don’t Care about the Super Bowl? Here Are Three Football Movies You Can Watch with Your Family Instead

View more photos

Boston Globe

Rated: 3/4

Nov 24, 2011

Full Review

Nell Minow

Common Sense Media

So much more than a football movie.

Rated: 4/5

Dec 24, 2010

Full Review

David Ansen

Newsweek

Few films have shown so powerfully the slashing double edge of sports fever.

Nov 1, 2007

Full Review

James Croot

Stuff.co.nz

Friday Night Lights still remains one of the most entertaining and engrossing sports movies of the past two decades.

Dec 8, 2023

Full Review

Leigh Paatsch

Herald Sun (Australia)

The game sequences do stand out, but this refreshingly no-frills affair also finds time to question the value of the win-at-all-costs ethos rife in modern sport.

Rated: 4/5

Jul 24, 2020

Full Review

Eddie Harrison

The List

With Billy Bob Thornton's garrulous Coach Gary Gaines masterminding every play, you'll get caught up in the action even if you can't tell your 'first-and-down' from your 'time-out.'

Rated: 3/5

Apr 24, 2019

Full Review

Read all reviews

Synopsis

A small, turbulent town in Texas obsesses over their high school football team to an unhealthy degree. When the star tailback, Boobie Miles (Derek Luke), 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 (Billy Bob Thornton) to instill in the other team members -- and, by proxy, the town itself -- a sense of self-respect and honor.

Director: Peter Berg
Executive Producer: John Cameron, Brian Grazer, James Whitaker
Screenwriter: Peter Berg, David Aaron Cohen, Buzz Bissinger
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Production Co: Imagine Entertainment
Rating: PG-13 (Rough Sports Action|Language|Sexual Content|Some Teen Drinking|Thematic Issues)
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 8, 2004, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 12, 2014
Box Office (Gross USA): $61.2M
Sound Mix: SDDS, Dolby SRD, DTS, Surround

Most Popular at Home Now