Friday Night Lights cast ages: How old were the actors then and now?

Friday Night Lights followed the exploits of a high school football team in Texas, using the sports drama format to cover a wide range of social issues including poverty, racism, and drug addiction. The story was based on H. G. Bissinger's book, Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream, and it was created by the director of the 2004 film.

The show received wide critical acclaim, including being honored by the American Film Institute three times, winning two Primetime Emmy Awards and one Creative Arts Emmy Award, and many nominations from organizations such as the NAACP Image Awards and the Television Critics Association Awards.

From a production standpoint, one of the more interesting elements of Friday Night Lights was how green most of the cast was. Of the ten main and recurring cast members listed here, half were either entirely new to the industry or at least in their first leading role when the show began. Because of that, the show launched many careers, with several cast members going on to become household names.

With so many cast members who were destined for greatness, Friday Night Lights is one of those shows that people come back to again and again. A natural question, as the series nears its 20th anniversary, is how old the cast was when they started, and where they've gone in the years since. Here, we break down ten of the most prominent actors, highlighting their characters, their age at the start and finish of the series, and what they have been doing in recent years.

Kyle Chandler (Eric Taylor)

Birthday: Sept. 17, 1965

Eric Taylor is the football coach for the Dillon Panthers, but he plays a greater role in the show as a father figure to many of the players. He has a strong sense of morality, and his refusal to bend to the will of powerful people gets him in trouble multiple times throughout the show.

The actor behind Eric Taylor, Kyle Chandler, was one of only three actors to be in every episode of Friday Night Lights. Prior to the show, he was best known as Jeff Metcalf from the '90s drama Homefront. When the show debuted on Oct. 3, 2006, he was 41 years old. By the time the final episode aired, he was 45. Since then, he has taken on many film roles before returning to television with Bloodline in 2015. Today, he is 58 years old.

Connie Britton (Tami Taylor)

Birthday: March 6, 1967

Known as "Mrs. Coach," Tami Taylor was just as involved in the players' lives as her husband was. When the show begins, she is the guidance counselor for Dillon High, though she moves to different positions in later seasons. She is often seen as a mentor to the women in the show, but she is also ready to provide advice to her husband or the school's young men when asked.

Connie Britton has the unique honor of having been in both the 2004 film version of Friday Night Lights (as Sharon Gaines) and every episode of the television series. When the first episode aired, she was 39 years old. She was then 43 at the show's end. However, she was hardly struggling for work, starring in the first season of American Horror Story later that year and then taking one of the leading roles in Nashville one year later. She is now 57.

Aimee Teegarden (Julie Taylor)

Birthday: Oct. 10, 1989

Julie is the often rebellious daughter of Eric and Tami Taylor. Although she loves her family, she tends to get into fights with them because of her liberal political views. Many of her plots on the show explore her romantic relationships, but she also faces tough decisions when offered the opportunity to move away from home.

Friday Night Lights was Aimee Teegarden's first major role. While many of her co-stars were established in their careers, Teegarden was just a week shy of 18 when the series premiered and had only been in a handful of television episodes beforehand. When she finished the series, at age 21, she was set to play the lead in the film adaptation of The Selection. However, that project never came to fruition. Teegarden can now be seen in Hallmark films and other holiday romances, but at only 34, she has plenty of time to continue exploring different projects and genres.

Taylor Kitsch (Tim Riggins)

Birthday: April 8, 1981

Tim Riggins was one of the show's more troubled characters, balancing his responsibilities to the team with troubles at home. After being abandoned by his parents, Tim lives with his brother and ignores his problems with alcohol and sex. However, he is shown to be incredibly loyal to his team and friends, willing to put in the work despite his "unreliable" persona.

Friday Night Lights was a life-changing role for Taylor Kitsch, who had been homeless for a time while trying to get his career started. Although he had been in a few movies that debuted earlier in 2006, the role of Tim Riggins changed everything for the 25 year old. He continued as a main cast member throughout the first four seasons, stepping away for much of season 5 when he was 29. However, he did return for the series' final four episodes.

Although he has not been featured in any movies since 2019, his career in television has continued with miniseries like Painkiller in 2023 and two upcoming series: American Primeval and The Terminal List: Dark Wolf. At 43, he still has plenty of time to grow in both his acting pursuits and his burgeoning career as a producer and director.

Jesse Plemons (Landry Clarke)

Birthday: April 2, 1988

Landry Clarke is Friday Night Lights' stereotypical nerdy character, but he grows beyond that role thanks to his friendship with Matt Saracen. As the show goes on, he begins to integrate into Dillon High's popular group, with plotlines including a growing connection to football and a major romance.

Jesse Plemons has been part of the entertainment industry almost all of his life, beginning with a part in a Coca-Cola commercial at age 3. However, his acting career was taken to a new level when Friday Night Lights debuted in 2006, when he was just 18 years old. Like Taylor Kitsch, he continued on the show through the first four seasons, only returning for the first and last episodes of season 5.

When the finale aired in 2011, he was 22 and ready to explore new acting opportunities, including playing Todd Alquist in the final season of Breaking Bad. So far this year, he has acted in Civil War and Kinds of Kindness, with multiple upcoming film and television roles for the 36 year old.

Zach Gilford (Matt Saracen)

Birthday: Jan. 14, 1982

Matt Saracen is one of the most important members of the Dillon High Panthers as the team's quarterback. However, he rejects many of the interests and behaviors of the stereotypical TV jock. As the show goes on, his backstory becomes more important, with his history of parental neglect consistently getting in the way of his football career and relationships with other characters.

Zach Gilford only had a few minor roles under his belt before landing a main cast role on Friday Night Lights. He was 24 when the show debuted, and although he was gone for most of season five, he returned for the series finale, which aired shortly after his 29th birthday.

Alongside a fairly consistent television career, Gilford is an established actor within the horror genre. This background helped connect him with Netflix horror master Mike Flanagan, who offered him starring roles in Midnight Mass, The Midnight Club, and The Fall of the House of Usher. He can currently be seen as Elias Voit on Criminal Minds: Evolution, at age 42.

Brad Leland (Buddy Garrity)

Birthday: Sept. 15, 1954

Buddy Garrity is an outspoken alumnus of Dillon High whose college football experience frequently puts him in conflict with Eric Taylor's leadership. In addition, he is the father of Lyla Garrity and her two younger siblings. Despite never becoming a main character, Buddy was around for nearly every episode of the show, evolving as the changes at Dillon High make him re-evaluate his priorities.

Like Connie Britton, Brad Leland is an alumnus of the Friday Night Lights movie, where he played John Aubrey. When the show debuted, Leland was 52. He was in most of the show's run, missing one episode in the first season and two more in season 4. He was then 56 when the finale aired. With nearly 100 acting credits to his name, Leland has remained prominent in the entertainment industry today, even though he will be turning 70 this September.

Derek Phillips (Billy Riggins)

Birthday: April 18, 1976

Billy Riggins is a former member of the Dillon High Panthers who was forced to give up a college scholarship to take care of his brother, Tim. While Tim frequently uses their parents' abandonment as an excuse to act out, Derek tries to maintain a stable environment, even if that requires working extra hours or crossing some lines to keep his family afloat.

Derek Phillips began his acting career in theatre, but his time as Billy Riggins helped bring him to screens across the country. He was 30 when the first episode aired, and despite being absent from 16 episodes over the course of the show, he was well-received when it ended, just before his 35th birthday. Since 2012, he has spent a lot of time working on voice acting for video games, which remain some of his top credits today. Phillips is currently 48 years old.

Minka Kelly (Lyla Garrity)

Birthday: June 24, 1980

When the show begins, Lyla Garrity seems to have a perfect life. She's a cheerleader with a loving family, and she's dating the quarterback. However, her home life gets increasingly messy as the series continues, which is reflected in both her social standing and her romantic relationships.

Minka Kelly had a few roles in film and television before Friday Night Lights, but her career took off when the show began. When the first episode aired, she was 26. Her final episode came in season 4, when she was 29. After leaving the series, she worked on multiple pilots, as well as more traditional film and television roles. Recently, she is best known for playing Dove in Titans and Samantha in Euphoria. She is now 44.

Adrianne Palicki (Tyra Collette)

Birthday: May 6, 1983

If Tim Riggins starts the show as the stereotypical bad boy, Tyra Collette is his female counterpart. Although she has the support of her mother and sister, financial troubles and her mother's erratic behavior leaves her jaded. However, she starts to get more serious about her future thanks to intervention and mentorship from the Taylor family, setting her life on a more positive track.

Prior to joining the cast of Friday Night Lights, Adrianne Palicki had multiple small but memorable roles on teen television, including playing Sam's girlfriend Jess on Supernatural. When Friday Night Lights began, she was 23. She was a series regular for the first three seasons, but moved on for season four, returning for the show's final episodes in 2011. When she returned, she was 27. Since then, she has taken on several major roles, including Bobbi Morse in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Kelly Grayson on The Orville. In 2024, she is 41 years old.