Yellowstone's Sheridan About Costner's Quit: 'I Hope It's Worth It; I'm Disappointed'

Summary:

• Yellowstone is ending with Season 5 due to an internal scheduling conflict between Taylor Sheridan and Kevin Costner.
• Despite their BTS feud, Sheridan claims he holds no grudge against his former lead star and wished him luck.
• The Yellowstone finale will need to provide satisfying resolutions to numerous major storylines.

Yellowstone Season 5 is fast approaching, and it will be Sheridan’s grand show’s conclusion. The Yellowstone creator never planned for it to be so short, but whatever his original idea was, it all fell apart when his relationship with the lead star Kevin Costner did. Amid the latter’s exit from the show, the second half of S5 is the finale.

Understandably, trying to force their own agenda on each other didn't put the two most essential men on Yellowstone on the best terms. What did Taylor Sheridan say about Kevin Costner after their supposed feud that led to Costner’s exit?

What Does Sheridan Think About Costner’s Reason to Leave?

The initial reason for the fallout was all scheduling, no drama. Kevin Costner, the lead actor of Yellowstone, was actively developing his own movies: also Westerns, but historical instead of modern. Costner wanted to dedicate more time to them and demanded a very relaxed schedule in Yellowstone to free himself.

Taylor Sheridan was having none of that. One thing led to another, and today, we’re talking about the second half of Yellowstone Season 5 being released without Costner and concluding the show prematurely. But admittedly, Sheridan understands his lead star’s reasoning.

“[Kevin’s] movie seems to be a great priority to him and he wants to shift focus. I sure hope it’s worth it — and that it’s a good one… I’m disappointed. [Kevin’s exit] truncates the closure of his character,” the Yellowstone creator told THR.

According to Sheridan, John Dutton — Kevin Costner’s character — was not supposed to stay on the show for too long anyway. That doesn’t quite align with the fact that the entire show is being ended because of the lead star’s exit, does it?

Does Sheridan Hold a Grudge Against Costner?

Despite their BTS feud, the Yellowstone boss admits that he doesn’t have any kind of personal problem with Costner. Sheridan claims that he always did everything in his power to keep the show rolling, but he was never responsible for anyone’s scheduling — hence, it was the “people way above him” the lead star argued with.

Furthermore, Taylor Sheridan believes that the media went too harsh on Costner, blaming him for Yellowstone’s premature finale and all the drama.

“Once lawyers get involved, then people don’t get to talk to each other and start saying things that aren’t true and attempt to shift blame based on how the press or public seem to be reacting. [Kevin] took a lot of this on the chin and I don’t know that anyone deserves it,” Sheridan pointed out.

We may never learn the truth about what went down between Costner and Sheridan (or someone “way above” Sheridan, for that matter), but at least the Yellowstone creator refuses to shift the blame. That’s a courtesy call you have to respect, especially considering how much bad press the show has been getting in the past months thanks to all the drama and the premature cancelation.

How Did Fans React to the Yellowstone Finale News?

Most fans were not surprised to learn that Yellowstone would conclude with Season 5 as without its lead actor, it would have been doomed anyway. Many pointed out that it was time for the finale already, anyway, as the series grew incoherent with Taylor Sheridan’s attention being spread thin between it and its many spin-offs.

“It’s painfully obvious that the show was stretched too thin between Sheridan’s writing going to spin-offs and the million little plots that never went anywhere. I still really like the show but it's a shame this is where we’re at. I hope the show can find a way to wrap things up for Costner well, along with at least a solid ending overall,” Reddit user Harris7123 wrote.

Others joked that, in a true soap opera fashion, Yellowstone could just keep rolling with a Narrator’s voice announcing that a new actor would portray John Dutton from that point forth…or suggested bizarre but entertaining major plot ideas for Season 6.

“So kill [John] off at the end of S5. Then air S2 of 1923 where it's revealed that Spencer Dutton never made it to the US in time, but instead got frozen in ice somewhere in the North Atlantic during the voyage. S6 opens with him thawing out due to climate change. He continues his journey and arrives just in time to save the ranch from Jaime and Market Equities,” FrankReynoldsCPA suggested.

As ridiculous as it sounds, we’d watch the everliving hell out of that. But Yellowstone is totally ending with Season 5 — so instead of adding new story arcs, it now has to conclude the already-existing ones in the most satisfying fashion possible.

What’s Next for Yellowstone After Costner’s Exit?

Seeing how the series must wrap up in the second half of Season 5 regardless of anyone’s personal feelings, there’s a lot of work that needs to be done — especially, since the first half of S5 didn’t help set up the finale. Many storylines need to be concluded, and there are quite a few ways to go about them.

Jamie and Beth’s arc of mutual hatred needs to end one way or another. Since Jamie is a rogue Dutton who tries to take down his entire family, we would bet on his meeting a grisly finale. The fate of the Yellowstone Ranch also hangs in the air, and its resolution largely depends on whether the prophecies and visions will come into play or not.

But the biggest question about the finale inevitably brings us back to Kevin Costner. His John Dutton, the patriarch of the family, will have to go: be it impeachment or death, he won’t be on-screen any longer. With John gone, the tensions will rise even higher, and we wonder who will survive and lead Yellowstone’s new spin-offs.

Source: THR