TheYellowstone cast have opened up about filming without their lead, Kevin Costner, for the show’s new season.
Costner led the award-winning series since it first aired in 2018, playing ranch owner and family patriarch John Dutton for four seasons. The show follows a group of American ranchers and land developers in rural Montana.
However, the 69-year-old dramatically announced that he was departing the hit series last year.
It came amid rumours that he had fallen out with its creator Taylor Sheridan. It was revealed at the time that his leaving the show would prematurely bring it to an end, with Sheridan expressing disappointment over the Dancing with Wolves star’s decision. Costner later doubled down and said he would never return.
Luke Grimes, who plays Costner’s on-screen son, Kayce Dutton, opened up about filming the fifth season that will air this month in two parts, without a core member of its cast.
“Him not coming back felt like, ‘Okay, we’re going to have to land this plane now for real,’” he told People.
“I think the patriarch leaving was always going to be part of the story. That’s always where it was headed is like, what do these kids do? What does this family do when their rock is gone?”
However, he added that despite the inevitability of the storyline, it definitely felt “different” without Costner.
“Whatever the circumstances may be, [it] definitely felt like, ‘Okay, we’re coming in for a landing.’ It definitely felt different,” he shared.
Commenting on “rumblings” about the future of Yellowstone, Grimes added:“It all comes down to Taylor’s vision. He has to see it to be able to write it, and I don’t think he’s going to write something that he doesn’t want to.
“Basically we’re just going to see if Taylor has an idea that he gets excited about, and that’s going to make all the difference here.”
As recently as June, Costner had maintained that he had not ruled out the possibility of a return to the show despite departing. However, he then confirmed it was definitely the end.
“I want to reach out and let you know that after this long year and a half of working on Horizon and doing all the things that’s required, and thinking about Yellowstone, that beloved series that I love, that I know you love, I just realised that I’m not going to be able to continue Season 5B or into the future,” he said in an Instagram post.
