Jesse Plemons and Adrianne Palicki in Friday Night Lights by Bill Records/NBC Photo
Cheers to Friday Night Lights for wrapping up a controversial subplot in typically subtle fashion. When Landry killed Tyra's attacker in this season's opener, some fans cried foul, worrying such a melodramatic twist could be a proverbial jump-the-shark moment. But the ethical dilemma was achingly well-acted by Jesse Plemons, Adrianne Palicki and especially the excellent Glenn Morshower (24) as Landry's conflicted-cop father. When Landry told Tyra the police had decided not to press charges, the look of confusion in his eyes proved FNL is no over-the-top soap. Rather, it's the rare prime-time drama that takes matters of morality seriously.• Read and react to Bruce's opinions on ER, Top Model and more!• Share your own raves and rants about other shows on the Reader Cheers & Jeers discussion board.• We may feature your Cheer or Jeer on TVGuide.com or in TV Guide magazine!
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Today at www.ae.com/web/77e/winter-tales/, the Heroes heartthrob is unspooling his new batch of American Eagle-sponsored webisodes — holiday-themed clips this time. Mouthing off on his behalf, in stop-motion animation mini-movies, are Kristen Bell, Fall Out Boy's Pete Wentz, rapper Lil' Jon and Friday Night Lights babe Adrianne Palicki. If the venture is succcessful, the frequently topless actor has sworn to use the proceeds to buy a shirt. — Ben Katner
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Dylan Walsh by Jesse Grant/WireImage.com
Dylan Walsh (Nip/Tuck), Sela Ward and Penn Badgley (Gossip Girl) are set to star in the remake of 1987's The Stepfather. Friday Night Lights' Adrianne Palicki is in talks to play Badgley's girlfriend.... Winona Ryder will play a young Jane Wyatt — aka Spock's mother — in J.J. Abrams' Star Trek film, suggesting the prequel will include flashbacks to a certain vulcan's youth.... Rapper Xzibit has joined Oliver Stone's Vietnam War drama Pinkville.Related: New Star Trek Film Beams Up House's Jennifer Morrison
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Jesse Plemons and Adrianne Palicki, Friday Night Lights
Landry's worst nightmare comes true tonight on Friday Night Lights (at 9 pm/ET on NBC) after a killer piece of evidence surfaces linking him to the murder of Tyra's stalker.
"This has been slightly controversial and has caused some concern with the audience," admits executive producer Jason Katims. Some feel the shocking, slightly soapy plot is out of place on a series that was rooted in more typical teen angst during its critically acclaimed, but ratings-challenged, first season. "But to me, it's been an opportunity to tell a story about these characters…. Jesse Plemons and Adrianne Palicki did such great work last season, we wanted to give them something meaty." There's no arg
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You mean Landry? Jesse Plemons, Kyle Chandler by Bill Records/NBC
Guest blogger Casey Marsella (Heroes) here! Leah couldn't make it tonight, but I'll do my best to recap this amazing show!Landry! Landry! Landry!Jesse Plemons made Dillon (and FNL fans) stand up and cheer tonight. His performance is what I love about this show. I’ve always noticed that the people who seem "out of place" are usually the ones most comfortable in their own skin. Landry used to be the goofy, one-liner sidekick, but he was always sure of himself. Tonight he proved that. His halftime speech was the highlight of the episode: "We can win together or lose alone." It was the perfect lead-in to: Clear eyes. Full hearts. Can’t lose!So, who’s together and who’s alone?Let’s start with the Taylors. Tami is thrilled to have her husband back, but not enough to give him the "green light." Coach was gently shot down and forced to sleep on the couch so Tami could finally get a good night’s sleep. The next day, the bags under his eyes initiated an unwanted ...
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Question: While I agree with your unrelenting support of Friday Night Lights, I do have to disagree with your decision to single Minka Kelly out as the "weak link" in the cast. It seems like it's become a trend to single out actresses (oddly more so than actors) who are cast in unpopular storylines or as unpopular characters. I don't love Minka's storylines on FNL as much as I do some of the others, but I find that her performance in that unpopular role meets the high standard of the other young actors on the show. I heard a lot of people personally deriding Adrianne Palicki — not just her character, but the actress herself — during her slightly meandering first-season role, but now that she is getting to show a range of emotion, everyone is celebrating her talent. The same problem extends to Grey's Anatomy, where Katherine Heigl and Ellen Pompeo are singled out as horrible actresses. Huh? Are they watching the same show I am? Both of their characters have made stupid decisions, acted ...
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MacGregor is out and Taylor is in. Chris Mulkey by Bill Records/NBC
Episode Recap: "Backfire"Who didn't have a little flutter in his (or her) heart when Coach Taylor, back in his Dillon Panther blues, stood up in front of that room like nothing had changed and said, "Let's go. Let's have some fun today"? What a way to end an episode that already just seemed to fly by.Aside from that weird, Mafia-like threat from Coach MacGregor ("I have a family, too, and you just remember that. I'll be seeing you again"), Eric's homecoming was nothing less than joyous. Julie and Tami are well on their way to patching things up, especially now that it looks like the grungy Swede might be out of the picture. Matt Saracen has someone back on his side again, and Buddy should probably be considered the town hero.Ah, Buddy. We may have just been witness to the only game in Panther history that Buddy honestly wanted his beloved team to lose. It was quite a sight to watch him hold back a grin as Smash got blocked again and again, leaving Dillon with a humiliating loss on t...
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Eric hopes he can get his old job back. Kyle Chandler by Mitchell Haaseth/NBC
Episode Recap: "Are You Ready for Friday Night?"Is this show about football or hockey? There was so many smackdowns (verbal and physical) tonight, that I think I'm forming bruises in sympathy. What does it say about a show when the characters who are doing the best at the moment are the ones who recently committed murder?That's right, you Tyra and Landry fans — the deed has been done, is probably going to be done again. And it seems like they're genuinely in love. Dillon's former bad girl — who seems to have passed on her particular brand of anger to Julie, but more on which later — is in a relationship with a guy that respects her and won't take advantage, so it's just too bad that the entire foundation of their love is that they killed someone. Their watch-shopping scene was the sweetest and lightest of the night ("it really doesn't look anything like [the old watch] except that they are both watches and have hands and tell time"). Definitely a welcome respite fro...
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Minka Kelly and Scott Porter in Friday Night Lights by Paul Drinkwater/NBC Photo
Friday Night Lights' Minka Kelly, Adrianne Palicki and Scott Porter are among the host of fresh young faces currently taking part in director George Miller's two-day marathon casting session for Justice League of America, says the Hollywood Reporter. Miller has some 40 up-and-comers on his radar for the comic-book-based film, which is looking to fill the costumes of Superman, Wonder Woman (Jessica Biel "passed"), Batman, Flash, Aquaman, Green Lantern and Martian Manhunter. Others on yesterday and today's short list include Adam Brody (The O.C.), Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Grindhouse), Michael Anganaro (Will & Grace), Teresa Palmer (Wolf Creek) and rapper Common.
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Matt tries to figure out how to deal with the women in his life. Zach Gilford by Bill Records/NBC
Episode Recap: "Bad Things"Regular readers of this blog know that this show make me cry on a pretty regular basis. Tonight's episode was no exception, though I'm not sure what part was most affecting. You'd think it would be Jason still coming to terms with his paralysis after recovering some muscle function, but that's really just par for the course on this show. As usual, Connie Britton's flawless portrayal of a new mother with a crumbling psyche was wrenching to watch. Was there any scene in which she wasn't desperately trying to swallow her sobs? And the thing is, it all seemed so completely organic — there was no screaming or a melodramatic "Why me?" moment. It's hard not to love a show that allows its characters to fully comprehend the ridiculousness of their choices, and when Glenn (the guidance counselor in need of guidance) asked Tami why exactly she and Eric were living apart, her acknowledgement of, "I don't know, that was just my idea, it was just a stupid idea," wa...
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