Friday Night Lights Cast: Where Are They Now?
4. Jurnee Smolett-Bell (Jess Merriweather)
One of the best arcs of the final two seasons revolves around Jess Merriweather, a young woman looking to break into the male-dominated world of football - a tough ask, particularly in less-than-progressive Dillon. Played by Jurnee Smollett (now Smollett-Bell), Jess is another in a line of strong female characters in a show that could easily overlook them.
Smollett-Bell has since enjoyed lengthy runs in various TV shows, from gothic vampire saga True Blood to slavery drama Underground, about the titular railroad. Smollett-Bell played a key role in the latter, which was sadly cancelled in 2017. She is to play a lead role in Jordan Peele’s upcoming Lovecraft Country, which blends pressing racial matters with horror, and looks like it could be one to watch.
More recently she portrayed Black Canary in this year’s Birds Of Prey. While the film didn’t perform as well as some may have hoped (with the current pandemic a factor), Smollett-Bell was a highlight, and can be expected to reprise the character elsewhere.