Kevin Costner Reveals Why He Hit Breaking Point With ‘Yellowstone’ & Whether a Return Is Possible
Kevin Costner revealed what pushed him to exit Yellowstone after tense negotiations that lead to his sudden departure from the hit show, in which he played John Dutton, the beleaguered patriarch of the show’s leading family — much to the disappointment of fans!
Per TVLine, Costner broke down his reasons for leaving the show in a May 20 interview with GQ, revealing that scheduling was a major point of contention, especially when exacerbated by COVID or 2023’s Hollywood strikes. “We very rarely started [production] when we said we would, and we didn’t finish when we said we would,” Costner explained. “And I was OK with it but it wasn’t a trend that could continue for me.”
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Costner’s final straw came when Paramount Network and 101 Studios decided to split Yellowstone‘s fifth season into two parts, clashing with his plans for his upcoming Western film Horizon.
“Their big plan was to suddenly do eight [episodes] now and then in the fall do eight more,” he recalls. “I said, ‘I have a contract to do Horizon, and I have people and money.’ I think there was a belief that I couldn’t get it mounted.” Costner tried to be amenable, offering to film here and there in order to fit Yellowstone into his jam-packed schedule. But that soon backfired.
“And somebody picked up the idea that I only wanted to work one week,” he said. “And that has been a carryover thing that I have seen in magazines: that I’ve only wanted to work one week.”
“My big disappointment is I never heard Paramount or 101 really come to my defense and say, ‘That’s not true. He was going to do three more seasons… That’s really f–king bothered me, that none of them would actually try to set the record straight.”
Costner did state that a return to Yellowstone is not off the table for him. Though, given that production for part two of season five is already underway, we’re not holding our breath.
“Well, Taylor and I know what the conditions are for coming back, and I’ll just keep that between ourselves,” Costner said, referring to the show’s co-creator Taylor Sheridan. “And if we can’t get to it, it’s because at the end of the day, it’s unreasonable for them or something.”
Before you go, click to see all the biggest scandals involving the cast of ‘Yellowstone’ over the years.
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