‘Yellowstone’ Was Rejected by Netflix and Multiple Channels, New Report Says

Yellowstone may be a major success today, but once upon a time the show had trouble even finding a home on television. Matt Belloni, formerly of The Hollywood Reporter, reported in Puck that Yellowstone was rejected by multiple television channels and Netflix before finding a home on the Paramount Network. According to the reporter, several networks and streaming services passed on the show partly due to its lofty budget. 

Belloni reported that Yellowstone, which already had Kevin Costner attached, was originally shopped around by Weinstein Co.’s David Glasser and producer John Linson. They reportedly didn’t garner much interest during this period. Yellowstone was specifically passed on by Netflix, FX and TNT. Belloni noted that due to the show’s $80 million budget, it was “too expensive” for broadcast television. 

Belloni provided some reasons as to why the show didn’t garner success at first. He wrote that the genre, the lack of international value, and the show’s target audience all played into why executives passed on it at the beginning. Additionally, Taylor Sheridan, who created Yellowstone, was untested in television, which made some hesitant to take a chance on his project. Of course, many of those network executives are likely kicking themselves now that Yellowstone has amassed a great deal of success. The show premiered in 2018 on the Paramount Network. It has since gone on to produce four seasons, the latest of which just ended. In addition to Costner, Yellowstone also stars Luke Grimes, Kelly Reilly, Wes Bentley and Cole Hauser. Yellowstone has been so successful that it even spawned a spinoff about the beginnings of the Dutton family, 1883, which premiered in late 2021. It stars real-life couple Faith Hill and Tim McGraw. 

As Yellowstone‘s success rose, so did Costner’s paychecks. Belloni also reported that Costner has received a massive pay raise since the first season of the series. When he initially signed on, he was earning $500,000 per episode for the first season. The actor was later able to re-negotiate and now earns $1.2 million per episode as of Season 4. That figure only stands to grow, as Costner is reportedly re-negotiating another deal for the upcoming Season 5. When he does re-negotiate, he will also get an overhead deal in exchange for appearing in future seasons.