Fans feel Kevin Costner’s absence is a major reason behind Yellowstone’s downfall, and some even suggest he improved Taylor Sheridan’s writing.
Throughout the time that Yellowstone aired, one of the most interesting elements in it was unarguably the character of John Dutton, embodied by Kevin Costner for nearly half a decade. Perhaps this was why, when Costner left midway through season 5, fans couldn’t help but feel a glaring hole in the Taylor Sheridan-helmed smash-hit Western television series.
That said, it’s no news that throughout the time Costner maintained to be a part of the show, the storyline somehow pretty much always fit perfectly. Even when Sheridan ostensibly tried to deliver a finale that just lived up to fans’ expectations, he inevitably fell short, and now even fans can’t help but admit that it was none other than Costner who kept the series alive all this time.
Did Kevin Costner make sure Yellowstone ‘didn’t suck’ with Taylor Sheridan’s writing?
Ever since it kickstarted back in 2018, pretty much the most highlighted element of Yellowstone was Kevin Costner‘s John Dutton III, the head of the respective generation of the Dutton family. So when the actor bid farewell to the role to focus on his own Western film series, fans were left nothing short of devastated about how the series was going to continue without him.
If anything, fans were sincerely concerned his absence would leave a glaring hole in the show — and they weren’t wrong. While the series finale was one thing that earned the showrunner tremendous criticism and the wrath of fans worldwide, it also seems to have brought fans to a major realization: Perhaps it was The Bodyguard star himself who made sure the show ‘didn’t suck.’
A Redditor, r/Stinky_Eastwood, recently took to the platform to point out the same, writing, “It’s so clear now that Costner was constantly improving Sheridan’s stupid writing.” As scathing as that criticism is, it’s not all. Apparently, the Redditor feels like only Costner ensured the series was still entertaining throughout the time that he was a part of it.
As the Redditor continued to explain in their respective perspective post on Taylor Sheridan‘s show: “The absolute nosedive in the quality of writing and characterization in the last episodes, and Luke Grimes’ admission that filming without Kevin made everything easier confirms for all time that he was heroically fighting to make the show not suck.”
That said, it might as well be true that the Dance with Wolves actor didn’t hesitate to constantly try and improve Sheridan’s writing while he was still embodying the eldest Dutton, considering how his mere departure seems to have taken a serious toll on the otherwise superhit fan-beloved series. And fans, in the meanwhile, are all agreeing to it.
Fans are convinced a major reason behind the series’ downfall is Kevin Costner’s absence
While the series reigned supreme for years, down until part 1 of season 5 was released, something bitterly changed with the release of part 2 of the finale, resulting in fans being majorly disappointed with how Sheridan penned down the remaining half of the storyline to be. Then there’s this Reddit post that further proves the point about Costner’s necessity in the series.
All of this coupled together has fans convinced that not only did the showrunner sport some really questionable writing skills while curating this series finale, but that even the 69-year-old actor played a major role in ensuring the show was as captivating and relatable as ever. Thus, taking to the comment section of the Reddit post, here’s what they have to say:
It’s so clear now that Kevin Costner was constantly improving Taylor Sheridan’s stupid writing
byu/Stinky_Eastwood inYellowstonePN
It’s so clear now that Kevin Costner was constantly improving Taylor Sheridan’s stupid writing
byu/Stinky_Eastwood inYellowstonePN
Needless to say, all of these fan reactions are more than enough to further prove the point that Costner, being an Oscar-winning filmmaker, actually did a lot more than just serve as the onscreen leader of the Dutton family, considering how he must have contributed significantly offscreen to the script and storylines as well.
Because, if not so, then Sheridan most certainly has left a lot of people disappointed with his version of the story.