The TV Western, created by Taylor Sheridan, is returning for the second half of its fifth and final season on November 10 on the Paramount Network, closing a chapter in the tale of the cruel Dutton family. The Montana ranching dynasty has been battling for their legacy and land on the small screen since 2018.
Costner played the role of family patriarch John Dutton from the start but didn’t sign on for the final six episodes of “Yellowstone” owing to scheduling conflicts with his “Horizon: An American Saga” films.
Nonetheless, the cast and one of the show’s producers have said his absence won’t dim the finale’s shine.
“I read the last episode the day before we started filming,” Luke Grimes, who plays Costner’s son, Kayce Dutton, said in an interview with Entertainment Weekly. “I couldn’t be happier. I think it’s a perfect ending for the show for every character. It’s just a testament to what a good writer Taylor is, and it’s a very, very profound, beautiful ending. I can’t wait to sit down and watch it one day.”
“Yellowstone” executive producer David Glasser also told EW that Sheridan knew how he wanted the show to end from the start.
“Day one, episode one, Taylor said, ‘I know exactly how this ends,’” Glasser said.
“He told me the ending of the show when we were filming Season 1,” star Kelly Reilly, beloved by fans for playing the ballbusting Beth Dutton, shared, echoing Glasser.
She added, “It was always going to be five seasons in [Taylor’s] head, but because the show became so successful, the network and everyone wanted more.”
“So, in a way, fate took it and we ended this part of Yellowstone in a way that he always envisioned it to end,” Reilly continued, seemingly alluding to Costner’s absence from the finale.
“It changes nothing as far as Beth’s desire to protect her family’s lineage,” she said of Costner’s character not appearing in the last half of Season 5. “In fact it becomes more urgent.”
And though none of the cast members will reveal what happens to Costner’s John Dutton, they all co-signed Glasser’s message to audiences. “If you think you know what’s going to happen, Taylor will always give you a surprise that you didn’t see coming,” the producer said.
Production on the final season of “Yellowstone” was delayed by the Hollywood writers and actors strikes. The last episode of Season 5’s first installment aired on January 1, 2023, leaving fans chomping at the bit for over a year and a half. The show finally resumed production in May and wrapped in August.
Meanwhile, a spinoff of the series starring Michelle Pfeiffer and possibly Kurt Russell is already in production, and a surprise Season 6 of “Yellowstone” with Reilly is rumored to be in the offing.