People spent so much time mourning the departure of Kevin Costner from Yellowstone. When he announces he wouldn't be apart of the final season, people lost their joy and enthusiasm for the show's conclusion. However, one of the key cast members for the show reveals that Costner's lack of involvement was actually all a part of the plan.
Recently, Kelly Reilly (Beth Dutton in Yellowstone) speaks with Entertainment Weekly for an interview. There, she reveals that Kevin Costner's exit didn't make or break the final season of the show. Rather, his John Dutton character didn't need to be there anyway. Moreover, he was already bound for an exit from the show anyway. "The absence was part of the ending. That's not something that we had to pivot, that was already written into the tapestry of the story. It was always going to happen, it just happened a little bit differently," Kelly says.
Apparently, Yellowstone Didn't Intend on Sending Kevin Costner's Character Away
Additionally, Kelly doubles down on the fact that Sheridan and company always intended for the five season outlook. Whether Kevin Costner would be in the finale or not didn't matter, the end result remains the same. "It was always going to be five seasons in Sheridan'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 says.
This goes in contrast to Kevin Costner's argument for the show. He firmly believes there's potential for a lot more story within Yellowstone. "That's been a wonderful part of my life, making Yellowstone, and who knows, sometimes things have a way of circling back. I haven't seen that dust trail coming towards me and I've always been open to what I started," he says. "Five seasons was a lot for us to do, and I think that story is not finished,"
