Kevin Costner's 'Yellowstone' Exit Sparks On-Set War Over Who Will Fill His Shoes on Show: 'They Really Miss Him'
Kevin Costner announced he would not return to Yellowstone for the second half of Season 5 earlier this year.
The mega-hit Yellowstone might be returning to TV screens soon, but trouble is reportedly brewing among the cast over who will replace Kevin Costner as top dog following his exit.
RadarOnline.com previously reported Costner, who played family patriarch John Dutton until 2023, announced he was leaving the show in the middle of Season 5 after butting heads with show creator Taylor Sheridan.
Costner cited scheduling conflicts and his need to complete his passion project Horizon as the reasons for his exit.
After a nearly two-year hiatus, mainly due to scheduling conflicts which led to the beef between Costner and Sheridan and the SAG-AFTRA strikes in Hollywood, the show is finally set to return for the second half of Season 5 on November 10.
But the highly anticipated return is not without drama, especially when it comes to choosing sides in Costner's, 69, and Sheridan's, 54, ongoing feud.
A source said: "A lot of the cast is caught between a rock and a hard place because they want to stay in Taylor's good graces, but some of them really miss Kevin and feel like it was a huge mistake not to figure out some sort of compromise that would have kept him around."
Production began in May on what was rumored to be the final episodes of Yellowstone, but now TV insiders are hearing there could be another full season in the works.
Sheridan and Costner reportedly butted heads, forcing the cast to choose sides.
The source said: "Nothing has been announced yet, but the current cast is in talks for Season 6."
With the news the show may continue, some castmembers are already said to be contributing much more than they would have when Costner was still around.
The source added: "When Kevin was a part of the cast, he was the undisputed alpha dog.
"Now, there are basically two camps – the people who are still loyal to Kevin, and the ones that aren't."
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The official teaser for part two of Yellowstone's fifth season.
The source claims fan favorites Kelly Reilly (Beth Dutton), 47, and Cole Hauser (Rip Wheeler), 49, are two stars who have remained close to Costner. Both stars reportedly remain in the camp, believing letting the A-lister leave was a big mistake.
While others, like Luke Grimes (Kayce Dutton), 40, don't seem to be looking back at all.
The source said: "Without Kevin, there will no doubt be room for a new star of the show, and the competition is among the cast.
"Things have already gotten pretty chaotic and petty. So, if the show does end up getting renewed for another season, there's bound to be some fireworks.
"There’s a whole lot of fame and money up for grabs, and everyone on the cast seems ready to fight it out to be the new leader of the pack!"
Sheridan landed Michele Pfeiffer to lead one of his new series.
While the future of the flagship Yellowstone may be uncertain, Sheridan and Costner both have plenty on their plates.
Sheridan currently has at least three spinoffs and prequels in production – including the prequel 1944, The Madison, which snagged Michele Pfeiffer, 66, to star, and 6666, a series set in the present-day at the Four Sixes Ranch.
Costner is currently focused on his four-part passion project, Horizon. Part one bombed at the box office and part two has been pulled from its original release date.
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