The situation between star “Yellowstone” actor Kevin Costner and the show’s co-creator and showrunner Taylor Sheridan has reportedly grown so toxic that the relationship may no longer be repairable.
Puck News reported this week that bitter divisions have been brewing for months between Costner’s team and Sheridan’s team and have even poured out into the open on social media. For example, a longtime associate of Costner’s took a shot at Sheridan on Instagram in response to Sheridan’s new mobster show “Tulsa King,” writing: “Stick to westerns, bro. You don’t know S*** about THIS life. Stay in your lane, country boy. I’m actually embarrassed for you as a writer and creator.” The post reportedly made it to the CEO and president of Paramount Media Networks before it was deleted.
The report said that the underlying issue was Costner’s “ego and his unavailability” which goes with his reputation of being “either exacting to a fault or an unjustified pain in the ass.”
Once “Yellowstone” skyrocketed its way to being television’s top rated-drama, Costner reportedly started “squeezing,” demanding to be compensated for promotion days and that the total he makes per episode be bumped from $1.2 million to $1.5 million per episode if there is a sixth season.
When the fifth season was expanded from 10 episodes to 16 episodes, the season was broken up into two parts and Costner had negotiated short windows for when he would be available to film. Costner contracted COVID during the first window of filming and instead of waiting till he was clear to work, he reportedly said that the window expired and filming had to be delayed by months. Costner’s team has allegedly only offered a very narrow window of time slots to resume filming for the second half of the season, which the report said was nearly “impossible” to pull off.
The report said that Costner’s team points the finger at Sheridan because the filming for all of the fifth season was supposed to be finished last year and they claim that Sheridan delivered the scripts late.
“The idea that Kevin was only willing to work one week on the second half of season five of Yellowstone is an absolute lie,” Costner’s attorney Marty Singer told Puck. “It’s ridiculous — and anyone suggesting it shouldn’t be believed for one second. As everyone who knows anything about Kevin is well aware, he is incredibly passionate about the show and has always gone way above and beyond to ensure its success.”
Sheridan is also behind the extremely popular “Yellowstone” prequel series “1883” and “1923.”
If Sheridan decides to kill off Costner’s character in the show, patriarchal figure John Dutton, then it could be four years before the spinoff with Matthew McConaughey comes to the network due to legal issues.
The report said that Sheridan was “furious” with the situation, that he can’t finish writing the rest of season five until the Costner situation is resolved, and that the relationship is likely over.