{"id":2019754,"date":"2025-09-13T18:32:11","date_gmt":"2025-09-13T18:32:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2019754"},"modified":"2025-09-13T18:32:11","modified_gmt":"2025-09-13T18:32:11","slug":"45-years-later-andover-highs-chiklis-returns-to-gridiron-for-the-senior","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/45-years-later-andover-highs-chiklis-returns-to-gridiron-for-the-senior\/","title":{"rendered":"45 years later, Andover High&#8217;s Chiklis returns to gridiron for &#8216;The Senior&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<header class=\"m-article-header m-article-header--standard\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span id=\"article-header-primary-term\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"a-term a-term--primary\" href=\"https:\/\/www.boston.com\/tag\/entertainment\/\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tEntertainment\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"m-article-header__sub-headline\">Ahead of a Boston screening Sunday, the Lowell Native talks Tom Brady, Boston University \u2014 and getting pummeled on the field.<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"a-photo m-article-header__photo \">\n<figcaption class=\"a-photo__caption\">\n\tMichael Chiklis plays Mike Flynt in the upcoming film, &#8220;The Senior.&#8221;<em> <\/em>\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<div class=\"m-article-header__meta\">\n<div class=\"m-article-header__byline\">\n<p class=\"m-article-header__author\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tBy <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"a-link a-link--inline\" href=\"https:\/\/www.boston.com\/author\/lauren-daley\/\">Lauren Daley<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<time class=\"m-article-header__date\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSeptember 13, 2025 | 10:37 AM\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/time><\/p>\n<p><span>8 minutes to read<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<p>Until recently, Michael Chiklis hadn\u2019t played football since his senior year at Andover High.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>I mean, sure, he\u2019d played tag football with his buddy Tom Brady for charity events over the years. He\u2019d \u201ctossed the rock\u201d with buddies, as he tells me. But the Emmy winner hadn\u2019t been tackled in a game since 1980.<\/p>\n<p>Then came a script \u2014 and true story \u2014 so good, he suited up.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Senior\u201d tells the true story of Mike Flynt, a college football player from Texas who was expelled in his senior year at Sul Ross State University for fighting. After decades of living with regret over letting his team down, Flynt learned at age 59 that he still had a year of playing eligibility. So in 2007, the grandfather tried out for the team. He made it.<\/p>\n<p>Flynt\u2019s feel-good story landed everywhere from celebrity.land to<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/abcnews.go.com\/GMA\/OnlyinAmerica\/story?id=3555569\"> \u201cGood Morning America\u201d<\/a> at the time. As one character says in the movie, summing up the vibe well, \u201cHe\u2019s like a 59-year-old Rudy.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<div class=\"jeg_video_container jeg_video_content\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"The Senior | Official Trailer | In Theater Sep 19 | Angel\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/BqufdXirirU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Also age 59 at the time of filming, Chiklis, a former Andover High weakside linebacker and fullback, returned to the gridiron to portray Flynt on film.<\/p>\n<p>The Lowell native texted pal Brady.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI wrote: \u2018TB, you\u2019re no longer the oldest guy in the field. Please help me.\u2019 He said, \u2018Football is hard. Good luck,\u2019\u201d Chiklis, 62, tells me in our recent Zoom. \u201cI was like, That\u2019s it?! Nothing else?! Throw me a bone!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I laughed my way through this interview. We may think of Chiklis as a classic tough guy from his roles in \u201cThe Shield,\u201d \u201cThe Commish\u201d \u201cHotel Cocaine\u201d and the like, but in conversation, the self-proclaimed \u201cMasshole\u201d is funny, quick, and affable.<\/p>\n<p>The Boston University \u201885 alum and soon-to-be grandfather now lives in LA with his wife \u2014 but has strong ties to Boston: He was the 2018 BU commencement speaker and performed Fourth of July esplanade shows with the Boston Pops in 2011 and 2012.<\/p>\n<p>The Golden Globe winner returns to Boston Sept. 14 for an \u201cexclusive pre-release screening\u201d and Q&amp;A from 4-7 p.m. at AMC Boston Common 19. As I write this, there are still a few free seats left.<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.eventbrite.com\/e\/exclusive-pre-release-screening-of-the-senior-tickets-1632973350249?aff=oddtdtcreator\"> RSVP is required<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201c<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.angel.com\/watch\/senior\">The Senior\u201d <\/a>\u2014 directed by Rod Lurie, co-starring<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/name\/nm1117791\/?ref_=tt_cst_t_5\"> Rob Corddry<\/a> and<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/name\/nm0000524\/?ref_=tt_cst_t_2\"> Mary Stuart Masterson<\/a> \u2014\u00a0 sees a national theatrical release Sept. 19.<\/p>\n<p>I caught up with Chiklis, who spoke from LA, to talk Andover, BU, Tom Brady \u2014 and what it feels like to play tackle football at age 59. (It hurts.)<\/p>\n<p><strong>I love that you\u2019re coming to Boston for a sneak-preview this weekend, before the film releases.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I\u2019m still very connected to Boston, and Boston sports. Boston University, I feel tremendous affection for. Whenever I can go back there and do something fun, I\u2019ll do it.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>On top of it, my best friend from Andover, Steve \u2014 we\u2019ve been friends since we were 8; we were co-captains of the football team in Andover \u2014 unbeknownst to me, put the word out to the guys on my football team. Apparently, half my Andover High football team from my senior year is coming to this screening. Which I think is, pardon my French, <em>f\u2014ing awesome.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>[laughs] That is<\/strong><strong><em> <\/em><\/strong><strong>awesome.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I\u2019m really excited. Some of these guys I haven\u2019t seen in years. I can\u2019t wait. It\u2019s just going to be such a riot to see some of those boys and have them watch me playing football 40 years [after our last season.]<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2048\" height=\"857\" src=\"https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/the-senior_frame-grab_04711294-68c580491cfb8.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-33980655\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/the-senior_frame-grab_04711294-68c580491cfb8.jpg?width=200 200w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/the-senior_frame-grab_04711294-68c580491cfb8.jpg?width=300 300w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/the-senior_frame-grab_04711294-68c580491cfb8.jpg?width=400 400w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/the-senior_frame-grab_04711294-68c580491cfb8.jpg?width=500 500w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/the-senior_frame-grab_04711294-68c580491cfb8.jpg?width=600 600w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/the-senior_frame-grab_04711294-68c580491cfb8.jpg?width=700 700w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/the-senior_frame-grab_04711294-68c580491cfb8.jpg?width=800 800w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/the-senior_frame-grab_04711294-68c580491cfb8.jpg?width=900 900w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Michael Chiklis as Mike Flynt addresses his team in \u201cThe Senior.\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><strong>I love that. So this script was sent to you. What did you like about it?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Let me count the ways. Honestly, all I do is read. I read scripts and books, always on the hunt for a great story. Yes, this is a football movie, but it\u2019s much more than that. This is a redemption tale. A story of a man who has been haunted by regret. He got in a fight his senior year, was thrown out of college, left with his tail between his legs.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>In his mind, he let down everyone on his team because they were supposed to go 10-0 and they ended up having a .500 season. He held onto that regret. He knew he could never change the past, but he [realized] \u201cMaybe I could change the <em>meaning<\/em> of my past.\u201d That\u2019s a classic redemption tale.<\/p>\n<p><strong>True.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Rarely do you get a story that\u2019s entertaining and exciting and funny \u2014 but also brings you to tears and then makes you ultimately leave the theater with a smile on your face in touch with your own humanity.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>I got to work with [producer] <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/name\/nm0161891\/\">Mark Ciardi<\/a>, who\u2019s one of the most prolific and phenomenal sports filmmakers. He [produced] \u201c<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt0349825\/?ref_=nm_flmg_job_1_cdt_t_20\">Miracle<\/a>\u201d [about the 1980 Men\u2019s U.S. Olympic hockey team.] That\u2019s Boston sports, man. All those BU guys were on that \u201c<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Miracle_on_Ice\">Miracle\u201d team in 1980<\/a>. And I\u2019m a BU guy. Chiardi, I think, because he was a Major League <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Mark_Ciardi\">Baseball player <\/a>himself, he understands the drama of sport. The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.<\/p>\n<p><strong>You played football for Andover High. Did you play at BU?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>No, I had several football scholarship offers, but I knew I was going to be an actor. Going to Boston University for theater was like your sport. You couldn\u2019t do anything else. It\u2019s a major commitment. Plus, I wanted to keep my teeth.<\/p>\n<p><strong>[laughs] Right.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I knew hi-diddedly-dee, an actor\u2019s life for me. So I passed on those [scholarships] to my father\u2019s chagrin, because it was full-blown scholarships to some of these schools. He was like <em>\u201cReally?!<\/em>\u201d But he understood.<\/p>\n<p><strong>So you hadn\u2019t been back on a football field since high school.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>40 years! More than that. 1981, I graduated. I played on those Tom Brady tag games for<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/\"> Best Buddies<\/a> [in the<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bestbuddies.org\/2016\/06\/08\/tom-bradys-best-celebrity-buddies-attend-charity-football-game\/\">\u201cBest Celebrity Buddies\u201d<\/a> tag-football games for charity]. I toss the rock with friends once in a while. But tackle football? With college kids? No, ma\u2019am, I had not done that in over 40 years.<\/p>\n<p><strong>[laughs] What was the training like?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Let me tell you something. When you\u2019re 59 and you hit the ground hard [pause] you feel your <em>soul <\/em>shake.<\/p>\n<p><strong>[laughs] I bet.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s intense. It\u2019s really also the recovery. I\u2019d get home, get in an icebath, and just be, like, whimpering. The next day, I\u2019d get up and be like [<em>grimacing voice<\/em>] \u201cOh my God. <em>Oh my god.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>The first thing I asked<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/img.texasmonthly.com\/2025\/01\/untitled-mike-flynt-project.jpg?auto=compress&amp;crop=faces&amp;fit=fit&amp;fm=webp&amp;h=0&amp;ixlib=php-3.3.1&amp;q=45&amp;w=1860\"> Mike Flynt<\/a> when I met him \u2014 first of all, when I met him [and shook his hand], I was like, \u201cOh. This did happen. This is true. This is a <em>monster<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>[laughs]\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Oh, he\u2019s an animal. I mean, he\u2019s in his 70s now and I wouldn\u2019t mess with him on a <em>bet. <\/em>I said to him: \u201cMike, are you crazy?\u201d He goes, \u201cWell, my body kind of deceived<em> <\/em>me.\u201d Because he\u2019s a strength trainer. He\u2019s in great shape, but there\u2019s a big difference between being in shape and being in<em> football<\/em> shape. Because <em>trains <\/em>in the form of human beings run into you at full-tilt.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1920\" src=\"https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/cleared_DSCF0966-68c57a2216ca5-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-33980630\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/cleared_DSCF0966-68c57a2216ca5-scaled.jpg?width=200 200w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/cleared_DSCF0966-68c57a2216ca5-scaled.jpg?width=300 300w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/cleared_DSCF0966-68c57a2216ca5-scaled.jpg?width=400 400w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/cleared_DSCF0966-68c57a2216ca5-scaled.jpg?width=500 500w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/cleared_DSCF0966-68c57a2216ca5-scaled.jpg?width=600 600w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/cleared_DSCF0966-68c57a2216ca5-scaled.jpg?width=700 700w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/cleared_DSCF0966-68c57a2216ca5-scaled.jpg?width=800 800w, https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/cleared_DSCF0966-68c57a2216ca5-scaled.jpg?width=900 900w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Michael Chiklis as Mike Flynt practices in an image from \u201cThe Senior.\u201d <em>Courtesy<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>[<strong>laughs] Right.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Holy cow. And I was <em>protected <\/em>to a large degree. Mike didn\u2019t have a stuntman who could come in and take the monster hits.<\/p>\n<p><strong>So you had a body double taking the huge hits. But were there any times where you got hit?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Oh, many times! Whenever I initiate the hit [on-screen] that\u2019s me. Or when\u00a0it\u2019s an equal hit, hitting each other. In some of those cases, I <em>probabl<\/em>y shouldn\u2019t have done that. I really wanted, especially anytime [the viewer is] near the mask and seeing that it was me, I did it.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Wow.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>But there were three or four shots where [my character gets] blindsided. I told the stunt guy, \u201cYeah, kid, you do this one.\u201d And thank G<em>od<\/em> that I didn\u2019t do those shots, because that poor kid got his clock cleaned so completely. But you know what? It\u2019s nice to be 24. He popped back up. I\u2019m like [<em>scared voice<\/em>] \u201cAre you alright?\u201d He\u2019s like \u201cYessir! Let\u2019s go again!\u201d I was like: \u201cOh my God, I would\u2019ve <em>died<\/em> if somebody hit me that hard.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>[laughs] You mentioned this is a redemption story. What do you hope people take from this movie?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>First and foremost, I want to entertain you. Then I want to make you think and feel. Especially the last one: <em>feel. <\/em>The whole thing is to move you. This is a movie where you\u2019d have to be made of stone to feel nothing. It really evokes that <em>go, go, c\u2019mon, do this!<\/em>-feeling. It\u2019s a triumph, even though it\u2019s humble. I love the humble nature. It\u2019s not Hollywood sensationalism. It\u2019s grounded.<\/p>\n<p>And Mike was right there off-camera the whole time watching us film, which was daunting, I have to tell you. At first, I was like, \u201cIs he staying?\u201d His wife, too. I was like, \u201cHoly s\u2014. They\u2019re just gonna stay?\u201d I was worried about letting him down. I was also worried: Is this guy going to be coming and giving me notes? But nothing like that. But he was so lovely and unobtrusive. I ended up using him as an invaluable resource because I\u2019d go over to him consistently and ask [questions.]<\/p>\n<p>I think also he was awestruck by the process, because he\u2019d never seen a film being made before, never mind a film of his life. He was like, \u201cY\u2019all work so hard!\u201d I was like, \u201cYeah, man, what do you think we\u2019re just slackers?\u201d He said, \u201cWell, you see what\u2019s on the TV\u201d [with award shows, and the like.] We don\u2019t do ourselves any favors in Hollywood. We make it seem like all we do is walk around in party gowns with Champagne. That\u2019s like four nights a year. The rest of the year, we\u2019re working 12, 14, 16-hour days in urine-soaked alleyways [laughs] kicking our heads against the curb trying to bring people entertainment.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>We\u2019re so afraid of looking like anything less than a totally-put-together <em>star <\/em>that we don\u2019t let our guard down. We don\u2019t let people realize: Hey, we\u2019re just kids from all over the world, we just happened to have some dreams to be in some films and television, and we came out here to do it.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019m from Lowell, man. Born in Lowell, raised in Andover, went to BU, took a shot and came out here. And I\u2019m incredibly fortunate. I\u2019ve had my ups and downs, but I gotta say, at my age, to end up in a movie like this \u2014 I\u2019m very proud of it.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<div class=\"jeg_video_container jeg_video_content\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"&quot;The Senior&quot; opens Sept. 19.\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/E9nQEmtorbo?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>I love that. And another sports role \u2014 you played <\/strong><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hoophall.com\/hall-of-famers\/red-auerbach\/\"><strong>Red Auerbach<\/strong><\/a><strong>, the legendary Celtics coach, in HBO\u2019s \u201c<\/strong><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/title\/tt10244600\/?ref_=nm_flmg_job_1_cdt_t_5\"><strong>Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty.<\/strong><\/a><strong>\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Ah! What a thrill. I\u2019m just bummed it didn\u2019t keep going. It was so good. Man, I just wish my dad was alive to see that. He loved Red. He was a huge Celts fan.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><strong>You\u2019re a big Boston sports fan, too.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>You can\u2019t take the Boston out of the kid. And I\u2019m obnoxious about it. My dog\u2019s name is Tom Brady. And I don\u2019t call him Tom, and don\u2019t call him Brady. I go: \u201cGood boy, Tom Brady!\u201d Then look around and watch people freak out. I love it. I\u2019m so antagonistic. I am a Masshole in that way.<\/p>\n<p><em>Lauren Daley can be reached at <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.boston.com\/cdn-cgi\/l\/email-protection\" class=\"__cf_email__\" data-cfemail=\"9cf0f8fdf0f9e5afafdcfbf1fdf5f0b2fff3f1\">[email\u00a0protected]<\/a>. She tweets<\/em><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/urldefense.com\/v3\/__https:\/\/twitter.com\/LaurenDaley1__;!!BspMT6SJLSDJ!KINQR4L9z2iNDN4VQIRp14_59xWm-XedwemFGUDRGcu_xiJyoeJmxZzWyhynMbfptQcxP97G0DAE3TytKwA%24\"><em> @laurendaley1<\/em><\/a><em>, and Instagram at <\/em><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/urldefense.com\/v3\/__https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/laurendaley1\/?hl=en__;!!BspMT6SJLSDJ!KINQR4L9z2iNDN4VQIRp14_59xWm-XedwemFGUDRGcu_xiJyoeJmxZzWyhynMbfptQcxP97G0DAEK0TtLAI%24\"><em>@laurendaley1<\/em><\/a><em>. Read more stories on Facebook<\/em><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/urldefense.com\/v3\/__https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/daley.writer__;!!BspMT6SJLSDJ!KINQR4L9z2iNDN4VQIRp14_59xWm-XedwemFGUDRGcu_xiJyoeJmxZzWyhynMbfptQcxP97G0DAEM3KIpmM%24\"><em> here<\/em><\/a><em>.<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"o-author-single has-avatar\">\n<header class=\"m-author-card\">\n<div class=\"a-image a-image--square m-author-card__image\">\n\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/bdc2020.o0bc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/IMG_5118-6813ae69baff5.jpg\" alt=\"Profile image for Lauren Daley\"\/>\t<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<section class=\"author-info\">\n<div class=\"m-author__section\">\n<p>Lauren Daley is a longtime culture journalist. As a regular contributor to Boston.com, she interviews A-list musicians, actors, authors and other major artists.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"m-block m-generic-cta&#10;&#9; m-generic-cta--post-content&#9; m-generic-cta--dark&#9; m-generic-cta--homepage&#9; m-generic-cta--email-signup&#9;&#9; m-generic-cta-block-style--default &#10;&#9;t-amp__generic-cta\">\n<div class=\"m-generic-cta__wrap\">\n<div class=\"m-generic-cta__content\">\n<h3 class=\"m-generic-cta__title\">Sign up for the Today newsletter<\/h3>\n<p class=\"m-generic-cta__subtitle\">Get everything you need to know to start your day, delivered right to your inbox every morning.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><script>\n\t\t!function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s)\n\t\t{if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?\n\t\tn.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};\n\t\tif(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';\n\t\tn.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;\n\t\tt.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];\n\t\ts.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window, document,'script',\n\t\t'https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/fbevents.js');\n\t\t\t\t\tconst onetrustStorageConsent = JSON.parse(localStorage.getItem( 'consent_one_trust_bdc' ) );\n\t\t\tif ( ( onetrustStorageConsent !== null ) ) {\n\t\t\t\t\/* The above code is parsing the JSON data from the local storage and storing it in a variable.\n\t\t\t\t * Checking if the user has given consent for the cookie C0002.\n\t\t\t\t * If the user has given consent, the variable consent will be set to 'grant'.\n\t\t\t\t * If the user has not given consent,the variable consent will be set to 'revoke'.\n\t\t\t\t * Documentation https:\/\/developers.facebook.com\/docs\/meta-pixel\/implementation\/gdpr\n\t\t\t\t*\/\n\t\t\t\tif ( onetrustStorageConsent.C0002 !== true ) {\n\t\t\t\t\tfbq('consent', 'revoke');\n\t\t\t\t\tfbq('dataProcessingOptions', []);\n\t\t\t\t} else {\n\t\t\t\t\tfbq('consent', 'grant');\n\t\t\t\t\tfbq('dataProcessingOptions', ['LDU'], 0, 0);\n\t\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t\tfbq('init', '989222871864976');\n\t\tfbq('track', 'PageView');\n\t<\/script><script type=\"module\">\n\t\t!function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s){if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function()\n\t\t{n.callMethod? n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)}\n\t\t;if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;\n\t\tn.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;\n\t\tt.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window,\n\t\tdocument,'script','https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/fbevents.js');\n\t\t\t\t\tconst onetrustStorageConsent = JSON.parse(localStorage.getItem( 'consent_one_trust_bdc' ) );\n\t\t\t\/* The above code is parsing the JSON data from the local storage and storing it in a variable.\n\t\t\t * Checking if the user has given consent for the cookie C0002.\n\t\t\t * If the user has given consent, the variable consent will be set to 'grant'.\n\t\t\t * If the user has not given consent,the variable consent will be set to 'revoke'.\n\t\t\t * Documentation https:\/\/developers.facebook.com\/docs\/meta-pixel\/implementation\/gdpr\n\t\t\t*\/\n\t\t\tif ( ( onetrustStorageConsent !== null ) && (onetrustStorageConsent.C0002 !== true ) ) {\n\t\t\t\tfbq('consent', 'revoke');\n\t\t\t\tfbq('dataProcessingOptions', []);\n\t\t\t} else {\n\t\t\t\tfbq('consent', 'grant');\n\t\t\t\tfbq('dataProcessingOptions', ['LDU'], 0, 0);\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t\tfbq('init', '813236348753005');\n\t\tfbq('track', 'PageView');\n\t<\/script><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.boston.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Entertainment Ahead of a Boston screening Sunday, the Lowell Native talks Tom Brady, Boston University \u2014 and getting pummeled on the field. Michael Chiklis plays Mike Flynt in the upcoming film, &#8220;The Senior.&#8221; By Lauren Daley September 13, 2025 | 10:37 AM 8 minutes to read Until recently, Michael Chiklis hadn\u2019t played football since his [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2019755,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25172],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2019754","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/45-years-later-Andover-Highs-Chiklis-returns-to-gridiron-for.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2019754","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2019754"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2019754\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2019755"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2019754"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2019754"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2019754"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}