Adrianne Palicki to Play Wonder Woman in NBC Pilot

The "Friday Night Lights" star will play the lead in David E. Kelley's reinvention of the iconic DC Comics character.Former Friday Night Lights star Adrianne Palicki has been cast as the new Wonder Woman.

The actress, 27, will play the title character in Wonder Woman, David E. Kelley's pilot for NBC.

The project, from David E. Kelley Prods. and Warner Bros. TV, is a retelling of the DC Comics title in which Wonder Woman (Palicki), a.k.a. Diana Prince, tries to balance her life as a vigilante crime fighter, a successful corporate executive and a modern woman.

Palicki, who appeared as Tyra Collete in the NBC/DirecTV series Friday Night Lights, stars in the upcoming Red Dawn. Her most recent series regular role was Fox's short-lived Texas-set drama Lone Star, which aired only two episodes last fall.

Palicki is repped by UTA, Anonymous Content and attorney David Fox.

RELATED: Five Facts About New 'Wonder Woman' Star Adrianne Palicki

Kelley, who penned the pilot, and Bill D'Elia (Boston Legal, The Practice) are executive producing. Jeffrey Reiner (The Event) is set to direct.

Kelley, also behind freshman legal drama Harry's Law, had brought the project to the network once before, but NBC reportedly passed due to executive reshuffling.

At this year's winter Television Critics Assn. press tour, the veteran showrunner hinted to The Hollywood Reporter that the network, headed by new entertainment chief Bob Greenblatt, would be a "good home" for the project.

THR reported last October that WBTV was developing a modern-day TV reboot of the classic iconic heroine with Kelley attached.

The news had come after nearly a decade of Warner Bros. and producer Joel Silver attempting to launch the property for the big screen. Several actresses had come into the fray during that time, including A-lister Angelina Jolie, and at one point, Joss Whedon was set to write and direct the film adaptation in 2005. (He has The Avengers on tap.)

Though the 1975-79 TV series starring Lynda Carter is the most memorable in pop culture, broadcast has had trouble developing a successful female-centric action series, with NBC's modernized Bionic Woman failing to grab viewers.

This pilot season, networks are looking again to popular franchises and formats. ABC is betting on a contemporary reboot of Charlie's Angels, while NBC is adapting British series Prime Suspect with Maria Bello finalizing a deal to play the lead role.