Kevin Costner’s YELLOWSTONE contract and his character’s future explained

There have been so many rumors and reports about it Kevin Costnerin the hit series Yellowstone. Some said that the actor had problems on the set of the series, clashing with the creator of the series Taylor Sheridan, and some said he wanted out of his contract, leaving the show high and dry. The drama surrounding the production indicates that the show will go from a possible 6 or 7 season series to the end after the second part of the fifth season returns.

A recent report from Puck News (via People) explains that Costner’s contract included a “moral death” clause. This arrangement, while unusual, indicated that Costner had a say in how his character John Dutton could be killed off the show.

The report stated that Costner, 68, had a long list of demands that included a pay raise, a reduction in the filming schedule and the right to weigh in on Taylor Sheridan’s scripts. Additionally, the outlet claimed that Costner’s representatives were “begging” Sheridan and Paramount to have him return for Season 5B and possibly Seasons 6 and 7 when they were still on the table.

Costner has been playing John Dutton on Paramount Network’s modern western drama since 2018. His efforts on the series earned him a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination and won a 2023 Golden Globe Award.

The success of Yellowstone it spawned an entire franchise with multiple spin-offs, including 1883which is led by a real-life couple Tim McGraw AND The Hill of Faith.

News of Costner’s alleged exit first surfaced in May, with speculation that this Matthew McConaughey would replace him. But Paramount Network later confirmed that Yellowstone would end after the second half of its fifth season, which was supposed to debut in November but the Writers Guild strike caused production delays.

The network later confirmed its plans to move forward with a spinoff starring McConaughey.

Costner – who is in the midst of a messy divorce from ex-wife Christine Baumgartner – has been looking to film fewer days in Yellowstone to star in his upcoming Western epic Horizon. But according to The Hollywood Reporter, there are still negotiations to bring him back to film the scenes that end John’s storyline.

Sheridan told THR he was “disappointed” by Costner’s decision to leave the show. “It breaks the closure of his character,” he said in June. “He does not alter it, but he truncates it.”

Yellowstone is available to stream on Paramount+ and Peacock, with a weekly re-airing of the series debut starting Sunday at 8:30pm ET on CBS.