ABC/KATHERINE BOMBOY-THORNTONA sure-fire way to make our fall TV crush list? Upstage Friday Night Lights' Connie Britton and Heroes' Hayden Panettiere!
Yes, newcomers Sam Palladio and Clare Bowen manage to do the impossible in ABC's new soap Nashville, thanks to their impressive vocal abilities, palpable chemistry and, yeah, their faces don't offend our eyes or anything.
Here are five reasons we're harboring major crushes on Sam and Clare this fall:
1. That Haunting Cover: Seriously, we wish we could play Sam and Clare's version of the Civil Wars' "If I Didn't Know Better" that closes out the Nashville pilot for you right now because it's so, so, so (so) good. Like it will give your goosebumps goosebumps. It's definitely a breakout moment for both actors.
2. That Time We Interviewed Them: We sat down with the soft-spoken duo at the Television Critics Assocation press tour this summer and grilled them all about their musical background and their experience working with Britton & Co. on the ABC drama.
3. Those Accents: As you probably noticed from the video above, Sam (British) and Clare (Australian) have some pretty awesome accents. Need we say more? No, we didn't think so.
4. That Will-They-or-Won't-They Chemistry: While Clare's character Scarlett, a waitress/aspiring singer, is in love with her boyfriend (played by Jonathan Jackson) on the show, it's clear that there's some serious chemistry between her and Sam's barkeep Gunnar, who is clearly head over heels for her. We have a feeling it's going to be a slow burn for these two...and we're not complaining!
5. That Show: Nashville is so darn good that it made our list of our five favorite new shows hitting the small screen this fall. It's got everything: drama, romance, music, politics and, of course, Tami Taylor, y'all! We're superstoked to see what musical awesomeness we'll be hearing from Sam and Clare on a week-to-week basis. We might as well just send our wallets to iTunes now.