As Yellowstone gears up for the release of the second part of its fifth season, reports are emerging around conflict on set, left in the wake of Kevin Costner’s exit amidst anticipation of a potential season six.
As a refresher, fans will get their long-awaited fix of the high-stakes melodramas of the Montana ranch on November 10, when the second part of Yellowstone season five finally arrives. According to Deadline, the show will also recieve a sixth season, but there has been tension among the cast and crew around the progression of that installment without Costner.
The actor, who portrayed the patriarch cowboy John Dutton in all five seasons of Yellowstone, decided to depart the series earlier this year, amid reports of drama and on-set tensions involving the show’s creator, Taylor Sheridan. Much of the drama centred round pay disputes, with Costner claiming he was offered less money to appear in future seasons, and that he was owed some $12 million for the not-yet-filmed season five.
That dispute, coupled with Costner signing on to direct the film series Horizon: An American Saga, led to the actor’s exit from Yellowstone, prompting a stern response from Sheridan. The showrunner said he was “disappointed” by Costner’s departure, adding that the shock exit “truncates the closure of his character.” It means that Costner will be absent from the second part of season five, but new reports suggest that his presence lingers on set ahead of a potential sixth season.
According to Life & Style, the Yellowstone cast are “caught between a rock and a hard place” as they navigate their loyalty to both Costner and Sheridan. “They want to stay in Taylor Sheridan’s good graces, but some of them do really miss Kevin and feel like it was a huge mistake not figuring out a compromise.” Other outlets have reported that castmates are “throwing their weight around” to become the show’s leader in Costner’s absence, resulting in things being “out of whack” on set.
Sources claim that Costner is aware that Sheridan might be reveling in the lackluster success of Horizon, which has only “strengthened his bitterness and dislike toward” him. The source went on to claim that Costner’s exit has caused a divide, with some castmates “moaning about what a big mistake it was to let him go” and others having an “attitude of good riddance because they’re desperate to have more of the limelight.”
The last we heard of Costner and Sheridan’s feud was in the latter’s cover profile for The Hollywood Reporter last June. At the time, the showrunner said he had “never had an issue with Kevin that he and I couldn’t work out on the phone.”
It was only once lawyers got involved, Sheridan claimed, that the feud became more complicated, since “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.” At this rate, I half expect a Yellowstone spinoff based solely on this offscreen beef, which is probably just as juicy as anything cooked up in a Montana ranch.
Published: Sep 13, 2024 03:43 am