With Yellowstone not even able to film right now, actor Luke Grimes has given a stern warning to those who think character Kayce could get a happy ending.
Yellowstone star Luke Grimes warned fans not to get too hopeful for his character Kayce Dutton ahead of the final episodes.
The much-loved Western drama has currently aired half of its fifth season – which has since been noted to be its last.
The reason for this decision remains to be seen though heavy speculation claims it’s due to leading man Kevin Costner wanting to leave the show and falling out with showrunner Taylor Sheridan.
Throw that in with the combination of the WGA (Writers Guild of America) strike halting the writers’ room in its tracks, and the SAG-AFTRA strike (Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists) seeing more than 100,000 actors and stars hitting the picket lines, the show is yet to even break ground on filming the final episodes.
But even without knowing what lies ahead, Grimes doesn’t think a happy ending is on the cards for Kayce.
He told People: “Here’s the thing with Yellowstone and my character: Hope doesn’t happen.
“I just learned to take it as it comes, and that’s it.”
During the chat, Grimes confirmed he had no idea when filming will begin on the show, with the team’s hands now tied until the strikes are over.
Originally, the second half of season five was due to air by the end of this year, with filming scheduled to begin in March.
However, things hit a roadblock before the strikes even occurred with Costner – who plays Dutton patriarch John – reportedly only wanting to work for one week in order to make space in his schedule for passion project, Horizon.
Costner’s team later denied the accusation, with future reports claiming it was actually down to a fall out with creator Taylor Sheridan.
After that, the WGA shut down not just Yellowstone, but also prequel spin-off 1923 – which was so close to filming their set is currently costing $75,000 a month to sit empty.
There is currently no end date to either strike, with both the WGA and SAG-AFTRA fighting for a living wage for all members, better residual payouts in the wake of the streaming era, and reassurance around use of artificial intelligence in the future.
Among the requests is confirmation their likeness will not be used without prior permission – with some background castmembers claiming on shows they’ve been ‘body scanned’ so they can be digitally inserted in future episodes with no additional pay.