While filming has already begun, Kevin Costner says returning to Yellowstone is a possibility if circumstances work out.
Much has been said of Kevin Costner and whether or not he’ll return to the Dutton Ranch for one more ride on Yellowstone. And while Costner has been busy with his own western – the two-part epic Horizon: An American Saga – without John Dutton, a key part of what makes Yellowstone such a hit is missing. So, under what circumstances would Costner jump back in the saddle?
Appearing on Today (via EW), Costner explained why he was hesitant for any return but also what needs to change in order for him to rejoin Yellowstone. “I did it for five years, and I wanted to work more than once a year. We lost an entire year at one point, and I thought, that can’t happen again. It was well over a year. I thought I have to be in a position to make the things. Material has to be ready at certain times, and we weren’t able to do that. After five years, I thought, I’m not going to do this. If we can get that, we can do that, and I’ll do it.”
Costner continued, “I’ve supported [Yellowstone] and I’ve loved it, it’s been really important to me. I would love to go back under the right circumstances. I think that’s what all of us want. At this point, for me, it really needs to be the right circumstances.”
But now that filming has already started on the final season of Yellowstone, it seems highly unlikely that Kevin Costner will be back in any significant form. If he ends up being written off, we’ll certainly know that from the first episode. So if he does somehow return for this last set of episodes, it would have to fit that character arc perfectly (maybe as a flashback or we see him on another ranch). However, if the original series comes to an end without John Dutton – and he hasn’t been killed offscreen – a sequel series has been greenlit with Cole Hauser (Rip Wheeler), Kelly Reilly (Beth Dutton) and Luke Grimes (Kayce Dutton) which could leave open the barn doors for a Costner return.
Do you expect to see Kevin Costner at all in the final season of Yellowstone? If not, how will it impact the series?