Throughout entertainment history, there have been many movies that later became TV shows and vice versa. Unfortunately for everyone involved in those projects, most of those adaptations completely fail. On the other end of the spectrum, after the release of the film Friday Night Lights, a TV series with the same name that was based on the same book was released to great success.
In order for a TV show to find a consistent audience, a lot of things have to go right behind the camera. For example, if a show looks bad due to failed direction or if its storylines are boring due to mediocre writing, the chances of finding success are extremely small. Of course, it should also go without saying that bad TV actors can tank a show as well. Fortunately for Friday Night Lights fans everywhere, the show featured a stellar cast. For that reason, is it surprising to see that so many Friday Night Lights actors have gone on to have disappointing careers.
7 Taylor Kitsch As Tim Riggins
Since Taylor Kitsch was considered the next big thing in Hollywood after Friday Night Lights came to an end, many people may be surprised to see his name included here. On top of that, it is worth noting that Kitsch has amassed an impressive fortune. However, the truth of the matter is that most of the movies that Kitsch headlined either failed commercially, critically, or both. Even though most actors would be overjoyed to star in a big-budget blockbuster, headlining movies like X-Men Origins: Wolverine, John Carter, and Battleship hurt Kitsch’s career. After starring in a series of flops, most of the powers that be in Hollywood lost faith in Kitsch and audiences began to see him as a joke. Despite giving a stellar performance as David Koresh in Waco, Kitsch’s career still hasn’t rebounded but hopefully, Kitsch’s upcoming projects will turn things around.
6 Blue Deckert As Coach Mac McGill
When looking at Blue Deckert’s career as a whole, it is clear that he managed to land a long list of roles over many years which is quite admirable. However, it is impossible to ignore the fact that Deckert’s career solely consisted of small roles. On top of that, after Blue’s last Friday Night Lights appearance, he worked for a few years but Deckert doesn’t have any credits on IMDb since 2014.
5 Gaius Charles As Brian "Smash" Williams
Another actor who initially starred in Friday Night Lights only to be demoted, Gaius Charles completely left the show following its third season. Following Charles’ Friday Night Lights departure, it was clear that many entertainment powerbrokers saw a lot of potential in the young actor. After all, Charles landed several notable roles including briefly starring in Grey’s Anatomy. However, since leaving that medical drama after only two seasons, Charles’ follow-up projects like Aquarius, Taken, and God Friended Me all failed to find an audience.
4 Zach Gilford As Matt Saracen
After being tapped to star in the first three seasons of Friday Night Lights, Zach Gilford’s career took a major hit when he was demoted to a recurring role for the show’s final two seasons. Unfortunately for Gilford and all of his fans everywhere, his biggest post-Friday Night Lights role was starring in The Purge: Anarchy. While that film was a hit, starring in it did little for Gilford’s career since the Purge movies are sold to audiences as a part of the franchise instead of based on the people that star in them. On the bright side, Gilford’s career may be turning towards success following his starring role in the show Midnight Mass.
3 Stacey Oristano As Mindy Collette-Riggins
Even though Stacey Oristano was never considered a part of Friday Night Lights’ main cast, she is a memorable part of the show’s history since she appeared in 45 episodes. Unfortunately for Oristano, the fact that she wasn’t considered one of Friday Night Lights’ stars was a harbinger of things to come. After all, Oristano has continued to work fairly consistently but her only starring role came as a part of a show that was quickly canceled, Bunheads.
2 Aimee Teegarden As Julie Taylor
Similar to Taylor Kitsch, many people expected Aimee Teegarden to enjoy a great deal of success when Friday Night Lights came to an end. Sadly, however, that simply hasn’t come to pass. Instead, Teegarden’s most notable post-Friday Night Lights role was starring in one of the most famous TV shows that only lasted one season, Star-Crossed. Aside from that role, Teegarden also starred in the forgettable horror movie Rings but she didn’t even play the main character in that film.
1 Luke Coffee As Randy
When most Friday Night Lights fans read the name Luke Coffee, they are likely to have no idea who that is. After all, Coffee only appeared in one episode of the show as a character with only one name, Randy. However, Coffee is worthy of inclusion here since his life has really hit the skids. According to the police, Coffee took part in the January 6th, 2021 riot at the American capitol and beat an officer with a crutch. As a result, Coffee was charged with several crimes including assault of a federal law enforcement officer with a dangerous weapon.