The US sports drama Friday Night Lights, set in small-town Texas and focusing on high-school football, celebrates its 20th anniversary since its initial broadcast. The show, which premiered two decades ago, was created by Peter Berg and drew inspiration from HG "Buzz" Bissinger's 1990 book of the same name.
The series was known for its naturalistic style, with director Peter Berg encouraging improvisation from the cast and using handheld cameras. This approach allowed actors to adapt dialogue and reactions, contributing to a fresh feel for a network drama.
Friday Night Lights launched the careers of actors such as Jesse Plemons, who played Landry Clarke, and Michael B. Jordan, who joined in the final two seasons as quarterback Vince Howard. The show's lead characters, coach Eric Taylor (Kyle Chandler) and his wife Tami (Connie Britton), were considered the moral heart of the series.