“Yellowstone” co-creator Taylor Sheridan is weighing his options regarding star Kevin Costner — and whether he returns, or doesn’t, to the hit Paramount Network series for its final season, supposedly premiering in November.
“They’ve internally discussed going a couple of different ways with the storyline if Kevin doesn’t return,” an insider told Us Weekly, noting that the series could shift the narrative, at least early on, to the fate of Costner’s character, John Dutton.
“[Taylor Sheridan] could incorporate a big event to explain the disappearance [of Dutton], or there’s a calculative move to protect his family from an enemy.”
Should Costner, 69, not return to “Yellowstone,” the insider told Us that the final episodes will likely “focus on the children and the ranch hands and their relationships, conflicts and alliances.”
There’s no word on how the show would handle Costner’s return as John Dutton if that door suddenly opens as the series gears up to shoot its final season.
Word of when shooting will begin on the final episodes of Season 5 has been shrouded in mystery amid ongoing drama between series star Costner — who is not currently expected to return — and Sheridan.
There was also the double-whammy WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, which put filming on the back burner and pushed the season premiere from November 2023 to November 2024.
“Yellowstone” co-star Lainey Wilson said recently that she had “no clue” when the show would return to shoot its final season.
”Yellowstone,” which commands a massive cable audience, has not aired a new episode since November 2022, so it will be two years between seasons once (and if) it makes its scheduled return.
The series, set in the present day, follows the saga of the Dutton ranching family in Montana and counts among its co-stars Reilly, Wes Bentley, Cole Hauser, Luke Grimes and Kelsey Asbille.
In the first half of Season 5, Costner’s character, ranching magnate John Dutton, was elected governor of Montana.
According to Us Weekly, the season ended with Jamie Dutton (Bentley) calling for his father’s impeachment, while John Dutton appeared ready to team up with daughter, Beth (Kelly Reilly) to have Jamie murdered.
A recent report in Puck claimed that Costner “has been telling people” that he’s planning to return for at least a cameo as John Dutton in the final “Yellowstone” episodes — but that “there are currently no plans for him to do that.”
In court documents filed last September — amidst his divorce from Christine Baumgartner — Costner said he “concluded his work” on “Yellowstone” in 2022.
Costner reportedly wanted to reduce his “Yellowstone” screen time while he worked on his four-part ranching movie epic “Horizon: An American Saga,” which premieres in two parts on June 28 and Aug. 16.