Why Did Kevin Costner Leave ‘Yellowstone’?

The biggest show on television has officially lost its biggest star. Sunday night marked the return of “Yellowstone” Season 5, almost two years to the day since the premiere of the current season. And this time around, it came back without Kevin Costner.

Ever since rumors started to swirl about Costner potentially leaving “Yellowstone,” there has been media speculation about a rivalry between the A-lister and series creator Taylor Sheridan. The truth — as is often the case — is a bit more dull than anything going on at the Dutton ranch.

Here’s why Kevin Costner left Paramount Network’s beloved show.

Why did Kevin Costner leave “Yellowstone”?

It simply came down to career desires and scheduling technicalities for Costner. During a profile for GQ, Costner was effusive in his praise for the show, revealing that he re-negotiated his original three-season “Yellowstone” deal to stay on the series for as many as seven seasons. However, due to COVID-19, the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes and various other scheduling disagreements, production was repeatedly delayed, which led to the now two-year gap between the start of Season 5 and the second half of this season.

“We very rarely started when we said we would and we didn’t finish when we said we would,” Costner said in the article. “And I was OK with that. I really was. I was OK with it, but it wasn’t a trend that could continue for me.”

The main reason why it didn’t work for him was “Horizon,” the Western film franchise directed, co-written, produced by and starring Costner. Because there was already a contract in place for Coster to lead this longtime dream project, he could no longer abide by any production delays on behalf of “Yellowstone.” The actor has also maintained that “Horizon: An American Saga” was never created to be a “Yellowstone” competitor but as a complimentary movie of sorts in the same Western genre.

Costner was more blunt about his decision in an interview with Extra reporter Billy Bush. “It was just time to move on and as gracefully as you can with something that’s been very important to you,” he said ahead of this latest batch of episodes. Costner went on to say that for five years, “Yellowstone” was something he enjoyed, helped sell and “that I helped birth, not from a creative standpoint but lending a certain amount of — whatever you want to call it — weight to it.”

“I was proud of that and what I was able to do. But it was time to move,” Costner concluded.

Is John Dutton really dead?

Yes, he absolutely is. We already broke down the death in bloody detail.

There’s not much wiggle room if Costner changes his mind and wants to return to “Yellowstone.” But between “Tulsa King,” “Lioness” and flashbacks, there are plenty of other Taylor Sheridan projects her can be part of if he truly wants to be.

What’s going on with “Horizon?”

“Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1” was released in theaters this past June, but box office was disappointing — it made $38 million against a budget of $50 million. As a result, “Chapter 2” — which has already been filmed — was pulled from the release schedule to give people a chance to watch “Chapter 1” when it started streaming on Max.

“Chapter 3” started filming but has not been completed, and “Chapter 4” — the planned finale of Costner’s film franchise — hasn’t started production.

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