‘Yellowstone’ chef Gabriel ‘Gator’ Guilbeau says Kevin Costner prefers ‘simple’ meals
Gabriel “Gator” Guilbeau — who prepares meals for the entire set on all of Taylor Sheridan’s “Yellowstone” shows and also plays Gator on the hit series — revealed to Delish that Costner has similar eating habits to his character John Dutton.
Guilbeau prepared a pineapple bourbon bread pudding dish for the outlet and revealed that this particular meal is one that Costner actually enjoys.
“Kevin Costner is a pretty difficult person to feed,” he began. “Mostly just because he’s very simple. Simple ingredients and simple recipes like bread pudding are great.”
A scene in “Yellowstone” that stuck out to the chef was when he served the Dutton family octopus during a tense interaction around the dining table.
Guilbeau told the outlet that although the seafood dish was prepared for the Duttons, “Kevin is a very picky eater. In no way shape or form would he ever eat real octopus.”
John Dutton’s reaction echoed the actor’s own take on octopus in the scene. Guilbeau detailed how it played out from the chef’s point of view.
“I sat that down in front of Kevin and he had not seen the octopus at all,” he began. “So, I set this big sea spider down in front of poor Kevin Costner. He looked at me like he was a little kid and I just stepped on his cat or something or stole his lollipop, because he gave me this look and it was a genuine reaction that you see in the show of ‘Gator, what the hell is that?’”
Although Costner has proven to not be a fan of some seafood dishes, Guilbeau explained that he was also excited to see him on set and his weakness is his sweet treats.
“Kevin always likes to tell me he’s on a diet and off the sugar, and then he’ll ask me to make him an apple pie,” he said. “The same day, usually.”
Guilbeau shared what he believed Costner’s diet consisted of prior to filming “Yellowstone”: “Before he met me, I think solely [he] may have lived off canned chili and hotdogs.”
The chef told Delish that he feeds upwards of 300 people a day when working on the “Yellowstone” and “1883” sets. He has worked as the head of craft services for director Taylor Sheridan’s film and television projects for the last five years.
As for taking on an acting role in “Yellowstone,” Guilbeau said, “I figured I’d be in the background of the show. I had a camera in front of my face… so I went back to the basics and started making dinner.”
“Yellowstone” has had a difficult year. Costner, who plays the patriarch of the Dutton family, announced his exit from the show, and Sheridan revealed that the series will end after the upcoming fifth season.
The show’s co-creator previously revealed that Costner’s early exit does not “alter” John Dutton’s character.
“It truncates the closure of his character,” Sheridan previously told The Hollywood Reporter. “It doesn’t alter it, but it truncates it.”
“Dutton wasn’t going to be around for the very end of “Yellowstone,” he added. Sheridan claimed the original script was left unchanged despite the abrupt ending.
While the show’s co-creator did not reveal if Costner’s character will be “taken to the train station,” which is “Yellowstone” speak for killed, he did give fans a hint on what will not be happening to the beloved Western hero.
“I was killed in a ‘f— you’ car crash!” Sheridan pointed out, referring to his “Sons of Anarchy” character’s death.
“I don’t do ‘f— you’ car crashes,” he explained. “Whether [Dutton’s fate] inflates [Costner’s] ego or insults is collateral damage that I don’t factor in with regard to storytelling.”
The “Yellowstone” series’ success has led to multiple spinoff shows, including “1923” and “1883,” along with an upcoming project starring Matthew McConaughey.
The fifth and final season of “Yellowstone” was expected to premiere in November, but Sheridan revealed during the writers and actors strike that he paused writing, likely delaying the release of the second part of the final season.