“Yellowstone Releases Mysteriously Intriguing Trailer for Final Episodes Without Kevin Costner”
With shoot-outs, land grabs, and family betrayals, Yellowstone delivers plenty of onscreen drama, making it a hit in the US and Australia. Who needs nuance and complex characters when you have cowboys and cowgirls flexing their muscles? The series is steeped in an imagined lawlessness reminiscent of mythical frontier times, when Americans were still “AMERICANS”—a term whose meaning varies depending on who you ask.
Yellowstone returns on November 11 with the second half of its long-delayed fifth season. However, anyone who missed the behind-the-scenes turmoil over the past 18 months might not realize that Kevin Costner is no longer part of the show.
The latest trailer, released today, may add to the confusion. In a puzzling move, the one-minute-17-second clip opens with Costner’s voiceover ominously stating, “Everyone’s forgotten who runs this valley; time to remind them,” while showcasing key characters and concluding with Costner’s face. It ends with John Dutton (played by Costner) declaring, “This war is just beginning.” Despite the trailer’s implications, it’s important to note that Costner is not in this season, even if he’s featured throughout the promo.
This marketing strategy seems a bit misleading. Costner’s portrayal of the ultra-masculine patriarch has been central to the show’s success, making his absence a risky move. The showrunners may be hesitant to fully acknowledge his departure to audiences who might not be aware of the ongoing conflict between Costner and creator/showrunner Taylor Sheridan. With the next—and likely final—batch of episodes just weeks away, the show remains tight-lipped about future storylines, though it appears to center around themes of control and power.
When the last episodes aired nearly two years ago, Jamie (Wes Bentley) had just challenged his father John and sister Beth (Kelly Reilly), setting the stage for inevitable conflict. In Yellowstone, conflicts aren’t resolved through boardroom negotiations but rather through a display of firepower.
Instead of wrapping up that storyline as planned, Yellowstone had to pivot when Costner and Sheridan’s relationship soured. Production, originally scheduled to resume in March 2023, was halted. Two months later, it was announced that the back half of season five would be the series’ conclusion, despite its immense popularity.
The dispute has been publicly scrutinized, primarily revolving around filming schedules. The studio and Sheridan’s team blamed Costner for his strict working demands, as he aimed to focus on his passion project, the Horizon film series, which has struggled at the box office.
Costner maintained a low profile until this year, only hinting at the turmoil during divorce proceedings when he threatened legal action against the producers for breach of contract. He claimed the delay in scripts was a significant reason for his decision to step away.
With Costner gone, how the narrative will adapt remains unclear. Following the announcement that the show would conclude with season five, two spin-offs—1883 and 1923—had already proven successful. Rumors have surfaced about a potential sequel or spin-off continuing the current Yellowstone timeline with a new lead, initially speculated to be Matthew McConaughey.
This has since evolved, possibly into The Madison, led by Michelle Pfeiffer and Matthew Fox, but no Yellowstone alums are currently attached. Furthermore, industry reports suggest discussions about continuing the main series into a sixth season, which could involve negotiations with Reilly and Cole Hauser.
However, Paramount might prefer to conclude the main series to focus on spin-offs. The studio does not hold the first-run streaming rights to Yellowstone in the US or Australia; those rights were sold to Peacock and Stan before Paramount launched its own streaming service. Ending Yellowstone could allow Paramount to attract its audience to Paramount+, where all spin-offs would be available exclusively.
