'Friday Night Lights': Where Are They Now?

Interesting that from a show that had so many good-looking young actors, the two people who would go on to the most success after the series ended are the parents, played by Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton. Slideshow HERE.

'Friday Night' Alums, or 'From Dillon to Eternity'

   I was just telling a friend how surprising -- but completely correct -- it was that Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton seem to be having the most success post-"Friday Night Lights." While Hollywood logic would dictate that the plethora of hot young newcomers would go on to bigger and better things -- leaving the 40-something "mom and dad" in the dust -- Chandler (always a TV actor) has suddenly found himself an in-demand feature film actor ("Super 8," "Argo" and four pictures in the can), while Britton had a hit with Ryan Murphy's "American Horror Story," before moving to the lead role in "Nashville." (IMDB also lists a slew of upcoming projects for her, including on the big screen.) Taylor Kitsch, the ridiculously sexy Tim Riggins, was Hollywood's obvious pick for the next big thing. But after a string of high-profile disasters -- "John Carter," "Battleship" and "Savages" -- it will be interesting to see if he gets a second fifth chance. Adrianne Palicki's "Lone Star" got cancelled after a couple episodes, and her "Wonder Woman" pilot (thankfully) didn't even get picked up at all. (Next up for her is the big-screen "Red Dawn," about a group of teenagers look to save their town from an invasion of North Korean soldiers, which looks horrendous.) Minka Kelly's "Charlie's Angels' got cancelled after a couple of episodes, as did Zach Gilford's "Off the Map." (I'm not sure if his new show, "The Mob Doctor," is fairing any better.) I have, however, seen that the great Landry (Jesse Plemons)  has a recurring role on "Breaking Bad." And I also saw him in P.T. Anderson's "The Master." And now it's come to my attention that hunky Matt Lauria (above) -- aka Luke Cafferty -- has a recurring role on "Parenthood," a show I gave up on because I was convinced it was going to be cancelled. (Apparently Lauria also played a himbo on an episode of "30 Rock." ) It looks like the "Parenthood" producers are using him wisely as well -- in underwear scenes in the ocean -- while the grown-ups get the real acting jobs! 

'Ten Years' With Channing Tatum? Sign Me Up!

Only heard about "Ten Years" while flipping through the Village Voice on Saturday -- how "Thirty Years" of me! -- then found myself in a screening and Q&A the following afternoon with the stars, including Channing Tatum and Scott "Jason Street" Porter, at the Landmark Sunshine. Despite its leading man, "Ten Years" is a full-on indie project, complete with a first-time director, Jamie Linden (best known for having written the screenplays for "We Are Marshall" and "Dear John"), no budget and no studio support. (Hence the in-person promotion.) Despite the well-tread ground of a high school reunion, the film does manage to mine some original ground along the way, with characters who don't all neatly fall into the "mess" or "together" column. Even the more cliche storylines feel a bit more genuine as the characters seem like they might have actually grown up together and have some real chemistry, which the cast chalked up to the fact that many of them are indeed old friends (the film is set an Albuquerque high school named after the one in Winter Park, Florida, from which Porter and Linden actually graduated) and that they all stayed in the same hotel for a month making this "labor of love" for which "no one got paid." Because the film was low-budget, Linden said he shot the film in sequential order ,allowed the actors to develop characters beyond what the script called for, and did not discourage improvisation, all of which added to the film's sense of realism. (I'm positive Chris Pratt had to have improvised those lyrics to "Lady in Red" at the post-reunion karaoke outing!) Besides the always-adorable Tatum (does anyone seem more natural and likable on screen than this guy?), Kara Mara shines as a loner who surprises herself and gets surprised herself by showing up, and Brian Geraghty steals more than a few scenes as the guy whose wife had no idea he "used to be a wigger." "Ten Years" isn't exactly "The Big Chill" for the Millennial Generation, but it doesn't feel like it's trying to be, either. It's the film's casual aspirations that give it a sense of authenticity and make it definitely worth a look.

''Clear eyes, full hearts, can't lose''

Daddy Complex: Kyle Chandler

The good news for us is that we get another season of sexy Kyle Chandler in "Friday Night Lights," the best show on television. The bad news for him is that he'll spend another year commuting between the show's location in Austin, Texas, and his wife and adorable daughters back in Topanga, tucked away in the Santa Monica Mountains. Photos via BestLife.

Related:

Morning Wood: Kyle Chandler

TGI Friday Night Lights

Friday Night (High)Lights