Yellowstone creator “disappointed” the show must end early thanks to Kevin Costner’s exit

Taylor Sheridan is the creator of Yellowstone, as well as spinoffs off like 1923 and 1883. That makes him one of the biggest producers in Hollywood, because Yellowstone is huge. People can’t get enough of the Dutton family, Montana ranchers trying to adapt to a changing world.

But they’re going to have to go without, because Yellowstone will end after the conclusion of its fifth season, which is currently in hiatus. Much of this has to do with star Kevin Costner, who plays family patriarch John Dutton. Rumors have been swirling for months that the show was ending early because he wanted to leave. Now, Sheridan has weighed in with a rare interview with The Hollywood Reporter.

“My last conversation with Kevin was that he had this passion project he wanted to direct,” Sheridan said. “He and the network were arguing about when he could be done with Yellowstone. I said, ‘We can certainly work a schedule toward [his preferred exit date],’ which we did.”

Why is Kevin Costner leaving Yellowstone?

The passion project in question is Horizon, an epic western that will run 11 hours long, broken up into smaller parts. In so many words, Sheridan confirms that this is the reason Costner is leaving, which is the reason Yellowstone is ending sooner than intended.

Still, he confirms that the ending to Yellowstone he always had in mind is unchanged; it’s just happening a bit sooner than anticipated. “My opinion of Kevin as an actor hasn’t altered,” he says. “His creation of John Dutton is symbolic and powerful … and I’ve never had an issue with Kevin that he and I couldn’t work out on the phone. But 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. He took a lot of this on the chin and I don’t know that anyone deserves it. His movie seems to be a great priority to him and he wants to shift focus. I sure hope [the movie is] worth it — and that it’s a good one.”

I know I shouldn’t put words in Sheridan’s mouth, especially when his actual words are right there, but I think it’d be funny so I will. If Sheridan were a more dramatic person, he might say, “Kevin Costner is leaving Yellowstone to direct a movie. Well, I hope it’s WORTH it.” And then he turns and marches out of the room and Kevin’s life.

The ending of Yellowstone is “truncated” thanks to Kevin Costner’s early exit

Back to reality, Sheridan does think that having to end Yellowstone this way does a bit of a disservice to the story. “I’m disappointed,” he said. “It truncates the closure of his character. It doesn’t alter it, but it truncates it.”

Filming that last bunch of episodes is probably gonna be a bit awkward. Yellowstone is hopefully due to return in November, assuming no further shenannigans.

To stay up to date on everything fantasy, science fiction, and WiC, follow our all-encompassing Facebook page and sign up for our exclusive newsletter.

Get HBO, Starz, Showtime and MORE for FREE with a no-risk, 7-day free trial of Amazon Channels

h/t The A.V. Club