Friday Night Lights: According to The Hollywood Reporter, Billy Bob Thornton is negotiating to star as the coach in Friday Night Lights for Universal Pictures and director Peter Berg. Brian Grazer will produce for Imagine Entertainment.

The film is based on the book by H.G. Bissinger and tells the story of the 1988 Odessa, Texas Permian High School Panthers football team and the town's hopes for the team's Friday night games to revive the community.

Thornton's current starring turn, in the dark comedy Bad Santa, is earning him strong reviews and helping to power the film to a strong top-5 performance at the box office.