Kevin Costner Reportedly Caused ‘Yellowstone’s End

Amid the fallout following the news that Yellowstone is reportedly coming to an end on Paramount Network comes an even bigger bombshell: series star Kevin Costner is essentially the reason behind the show’s end, Deadline reports. As a result, series creator Taylor Sheridan, Paramount Global, and Paramount Network are reportedly on the same page about ending the series.

According to the publication, Costner got into disagreements with the production team over the shooting schedule. The actor originally limited himself to 65 days of shooting but later limited himself to 50 shooting days for the first part of Yellowstone‘s current season. When it came to the second half of the season, Costner only wanted to film for a week. Deadline noted that he is currently directing and starring in a multi-part western epic, Horizon, which he also co-wrote. So, it’s possible that he wanted to take a step back from Yellowstone in order to dedicate more time to this project. With Costner spending less time on the Yellowstone set, it should come as no surprise to hear that he will reportedly barely appear in the remaining episodes of Season 5. 

Since Costner portrays John Dutton, the patriarch of the family in Yellowstone, his scheduling issues have caused strife for the production. But, Paramount Network has reportedly made a decision about Yellowstone‘s future in light of this drama. They reportedly rejected Costner’s proposal about his work schedule and are said to be moving on to a new Dutton-centric project with Matthew McConaughey to star. As of right now, it’s unclear what this new show would look like. Additionally, there’s been no word on which Yellowstone stars may be appearing in this new spinoff. 

The Paramount Network did respond to Deadline‘s request for comment about this story. Their statement read, “We have no news to report. Kevin Costner is a big part of Yellowstone and we hope that’s the case for a long time to come. Thanks to the brilliant mind of Taylor Sheridan, we are always working on franchise expansions of this incredible world he has built. Matthew McConaughey is a phenomenal talent with whom we’d love to partner.” Even though the Paramount Network did say that Costner is a “big part” of the Yellowstone franchise, it’s clear that the popular series may be facing significant upheaval. But, only time will tell what Yellowstone‘s future actually looks like.