There are some shows for which it’s impossible to imagine them continuing without their lead: Grey’s Anatomy without Ellen Pompeo (though it’s poised to do just that), Law & Order: SVU without Mariska Hargitay, at one time NCIS without Mark Harmon (until it did). But what about Yellowstone and Kevin Costner?
A report surfaced in February that the series might be ending sooner than anyone expected (as in after the second half of Season 5 this summer) due to Costner’s desired filming schedule. Then, in April, after most of the cast didn’t show for a PaleyFest panel, Keith Cox, president of development and production for Paramount Network, said he’s “very confident” Costner is still committed to the show. Whatever is going on, it does have us wondering: Should the Paramount Network drama end if it were to lose Costner as patriarch John Dutton at any point?
First, looking at it from a story perspective, Yellowstone has been showing John away from the ranch — the downside of his duties as governor — and in the process, we’ve seen others, namely Rip (Cole Hauser) and Kayce (Luke Grimes), stepping up or about to do so. We could simply continue to see that, however John’s absence might be explained with limited or no Costner. Plus, it could be interesting to see how the Duttons, as well as those who work at the ranch, handle things without John. Could the drama between Beth (Kelly Reilly) and Jamie (Wes Bentley) somehow (they are planning to have each other killed) reach new heights? Could we see Kayce even more torn between the ranch and his family? And John could live on in flashbacks with Josh Lucas.
Say Yellowstone were to ever continue with Costner only in a limited capacity or not part of it at all, how should John be written out? Right now, John’s facing possible impeachment, which means having him tied up off-screen with his duties as governor might not be an option. We’ve already seen the possibility of him dying, most recently when he, Beth, and Kayce all came under attack in the Season 3 finale. But that is certainly an option: The Duttons (and specifically John) have plenty of enemies, or things could always go very wrong if Jamie does in fact try to have Beth killed. It does seem like, due to what the ranch means to John, death would be the only way to explain him gone.
It was also reported in February that there could be a new show in the ever-expanding world of Yellowstone starring Matthew McConaughey (then it was just in the talks stages), with some of the cast of the original series potentially part of it. It could be interesting to see how someone new and a new show (which would likely have at least a slightly different feel) could work with some of the existing characters we’ve gotten to know for years, if any did appear. Location might depend on who could move over.
But what do you think? Should Yellowstone continue without Kevin Costner? Let us know in the poll below.
Yellowstone, Season 5 Returns, Summer, Paramount Network