Taylor Kitsch Turned Down Offer To Return To ‘Friday Night Lights’ Reboot As Tim Riggins: “I’m Not Going Back”

If there’s no Tim Riggins, I don’t want it…

For a little while, rumors have been swirling that a reboot of the beloved show Friday Night Lights would be coming back as an updated version of the original series, and Variety previously confirmed it was in the works at Universal Television.

However, fans might be disappointed to hear that it’s set to take place in the “same universe” of the original show, but it’s not expected to return any original cast members. So those that were hoping to see fan favorite characters played by Kyle Chandler, Connie Britton, Gaius Charles, Taylor Kitsch and Jesse Plemons again… it won’t exactly be that.

Though the program is expected to bring back some intricate parts of the production, with series show runner Jason Katims and executive producer Brain Grazer returning to tackle the revived football franchise.

According to Entertainment Weekly, this new storyline will be set in the wake of “a devastating hurricane,” with a “ragtag high school football team and their damaged, interim coach [making] an unlikely bid for a Texas High School State Championship [and] becoming a beacon of light for their town.”

Peter Berg, who directed the 2004 film and developed the NBC series, will direct and executive produce the reboot.

It sounds like it’s still in the developmental stage, and there have been rumors about this for years now, so it’s unclear if any of the original cast could change their minds and end up coming back after all.

A ‘FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS’ reboot is in the works.

The series will be set in the same universe as the original but with new characters.

(Source: https://t.co/DbePCn176L) pic.twitter.com/qbK6FiDy70

— DiscussingFilm (@DiscussingFilm) November 15, 2024

But one person in particular is adamant they won’t be part of it, and that would be Taylor Kitsch, who played the beloved character Tim Riggins and was a fan-favorite among the ladies for obvious reasons.

In a recent interview with The Wrap, Kitsch was very short and sweet with his response when asked about the possibility of appearing on the reboot, and he did not mince his words, saying that he was in fact asked to return, but he’s “not going back”:

“Yes, I was asked to do it. Yeah, I’m not going back. No.”

Well… that’s pretty clear, so sadly, at least one of the OG cast members, my personal favorite, is out:

@thewrap #TaylorKitsch ♬ original sound – TheWrap

Previously, Kitsch has said he might would do a cameo or something short, but it sounds like that’s out of the question now and he’s not entertaining the idea of any of it, no matter how small the part would be. It’s disappointing, I think all of us FNL fans would love to see everyone return and for it to be as incredible as the original, but that’s rarely how these things go and it’s probably best just left alone.

Of course, the popular TV series was inspired by a 1990 novel written by H.G. Bissinger that was also titled Friday Night Lights. And the TV show wasn’t even the first time that book was adapted on screen. Some might also remember FNL being a movie that starred Billy Bob Thornton.

The original Friday Night Lights series ran from 2006 to 2011, with the earlier seasons airing on NBC and the later finding a home at AT&T’s The 101 Network. For that aren’t familiar with the program, it closely followed a number of intricate storylines surrounding a high school football team in a fictional town of Dillon, Texas. Kyle Chandler played the iconic Coach Taylor, and some might say his performance in the role made the entire show.

It’s one of my all-time favorites, one I’ve rewatched many times over, and while I’m open to seeing how the reboot this, especially since the original director and producers are involved, but it just won’t be the same without Riggins.The post Taylor Kitsch Turned Down Offer To Return To ‘Friday Night Lights’ Reboot As Tim Riggins: “I’m Not Going Back” first appeared on Whiskey Riff.