A new report says Kevin Costner won’t feature in Yellowstone Season 5 Part 2 amid various disagreements with the makers of the Western drama series.
The second half of Yellowstone Season 5 will not feature the show’s central character, as a new report says Kevin Costner is out of the remainder of the Western drama’s final season.
Via The Town podcast, Hollywood insider Matt Belloni reports Costner wouldn’t be returning during Season 5 Part 2, with his lead character John Dutton III being written out of the show. Belloni revealed production for Yellowstone Season 5 Part 2 is expected to resume in early 2024. However, there are no plans for Costner’s character in the script for the series. “Yellowstone will probably go back into production at the beginning of the year. So it could be out this spring or summer. Scripts are already written, I’m told, or are being written. And the question is whether Costner is in those final episodes of this season of Yellowstone. And my understanding is that, as of now, he is not going to be in those episodes,” Belloni said.
The reported split between Yellowstone and Costner comes amid growing tensions between the makers of the Western drama and the award-winning actor. Costner has been at odds with Yellowstone due to various issues, including financial disagreements, scheduling conflicts and creative control battles with the show’s co-creator Taylor Sheridan. Things have gotten so sour between the two parties that Costner signaled his intent to take Yellowstone to court over his acrimonious exit.
Costner has been the leading man in Yellowstone since its inception, with the show revolving around his character and the fight to keep hold of his titular ranch in Montana while dealing with persistent family drama. His portrayal of John on the show was widely lauded, with the star receiving a Best Actor Golden Globe for his showing in Season 4. Costner reportedly grew an ego behind the scenes, frustrating Sheridan and his co-stars, while recent reports showed how much creative control the actor had, going as far as to dictate in his contract how John died in the series.
Paramount canceled Yellowstone in May, simultaneously announcing an upcoming sequel series starring Oscar-winning actor Matthew McConaughey. Season 5 Part 1 finished airing in January, with Part 2 expected to begin filming this past summer before the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes took over Hollywood. In the meantime, Yellowstone has been airing past seasons of the show on CBS until the remainder of Season 5 premieres.
With the SAG-AFTRA strike coming to a tentative end, fans can expect confirmation of when Yellowstone Season 5 Part 2 will resume production, as well as news on the restart of Season 2 of its 1923 prequel series starring Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren. Yellowstone stars Luke Grimes (Kayce Dutton), Kelly Reilly (Beth Dutton), Cole Hauser (Rip Wheeler) and Wes Bentley (Jamie Dutton).
Costner is now set to release his upcoming two-part epic Western film, Horizon: An American Saga, which he stars in, produced and directed. Chapter 1 will premiere on June 28, 2024, while Chapter 2 debuts on Aug. 16, 2024.