Kevin Costner is one of the most captivating talents that has showcased his talents in front of a camera. Not only a remarkable actor but Costner is also an acclaimed filmmaker in Hollywood. He is renowned for a plethora of roles in a wide genre of films, some of his most notable works are OPen Range, JFK, Dances With Wolves, and many more.
However, the actor proved that besides working on the silver screen, he can also make names as a television star. The Let Him Go actor has earned some serious fame through his impactful performance in the popular TV Series Yellowstone. While the show faced some criticism, without Kevin Costner the show would not have been the same, as he saved the show from crumbling down.
Kevin Costner Saves Yellowstone From Falling to Pieces
With five seasons and a massive fan base for the show, Yellowstone is one of the most popular shows in recent times. It taps into America’s history, specifically on an American family who have held a piece of land since the Civil War. The show has a classic element to it, combined with different elements such as backstabbing and squabbles, making it one of the best shows to binge-watch.
While the show is immensely popular around the world, turns out it would have fallen apart before it even started. During an appearance with ABC’s Good Morning America, Kevin Costner who played the role of John Dutton in the five seasons of the show mentioned that the series was supposed to be “one long movie.” This convinced the actor to join the project, but down the line, it was decided that the project would be a “multi-season thing,” leaving him to make a crucial decision.
“When I was approached with this, it was going to be one long movie, a 10-episode movie, like a Hatfields and McCoys. And somewhere along the line, the show got put together and it was no longer going to be that. I felt, in a way, that a lot of it had been put together because of me agreeing that I would do it. And so lo and behold, it went from one season to suddenly it was going to be a multi-season thing, and I had to make a real fundamental decision there.”
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The Field of Dreams actor continued how going back on his word would make the show fall apart. Hence, he put a stone on his heart and decided to go on with the show.
“I thought actually, if I would have said, ‘Well, now I’m not doing it,’ that maybe it might have crumbled before it got started. So I kind of took the weight on emotionally not wanting to have the show crumble, but that’s how it started.”
While the show was saved by Costner, it looks like he won’t be a part of the extended franchise of the series.
Kevin Costner Quits Yellowstone
Not long after wrapping up the fifth season of the show Deadline reported that there could be some problems related to the show going forward. And in a strange turn of events, Paramount announced that Yellowstone would be over after the 5th season. As per Deadline’s sources, the issue lay with the shooting dates with Kevin Costner. However, Marty Singer, the actor’s attorney has denied those claims as he told Puck News that it is “an absolute lie.”
In an exclusive interview with People, the actor states that his ongoing divorce with Christine Baumgartner led to a “long, hard-fought negotiation” for the rescheduling of the dates and splitting season 5 into two parts made him walk away from the renowned series. He added that the salary also played a part as the showrunners decided to do “pay or play” which did not pan out very well as they offered him $12 million for each part of season 5.
“I couldn’t help them any more. We tried to negotiate, they offered me less money than previous seasons, there were issues with the creative…”
Before Kevin Costner decided to walk away he told his representatives that money was not the key factor to him, but they walked away.
“Have them pay me whatever number, we came up with a number, and they [Yellowstone] walked away.”
However, fans of the series must not feel sad as Paramount has announced that they will be expanding the franchise with a new show with Matthew McConaughey in talks with the stars of Yellowstone.
Yellowstone can be streamed on Paramount Network.