Meet the Yellowstone players who are stepping in after Kevin Costner’s John Dutton leaves the cast
“Yellowstone” star Kevin Costner on the new film “Horizon”
Actor and director Kevin Costner says his new film “Horizon: An American Saga” is an honor for fans of “Yellowstone.”
For nearly five seasons, the relationship between ranch owner John Dutton (Kevin Costner) and casino mogul Chief Thomas Rainmaker (Gil Birmingham) was one of the most exciting and ever-changing “Yellowstone” relationships.
The two have often argued over the Duttons’ Yellowstone Ranch. Rainmaker has made his ambitions clear: he wants to incorporate the Rhode Island-sized property into the Broken Rock Reservation and reclaim what his ancestors lost.
Without Costner, who will not return to “Yellowstone” for the second half of Season 5 (premieres Nov. 10 on Paramount Network), Rainmaker and his right-hand man Mo Brings Plenty play an even bigger role in the final chapter of USA TODAY’s “Yellowstone” First Look Week, which features two more exclusive photos from the new episodes.
In the midseason finale in January 2023, Montana Governor Dutton Rainwater provided surprising and much-needed support to prevent a pipeline through the reservation. But any budding alliance between the formidable powers ends with Dutton’s absence from the series, no matter how “Yellowstone” creator Taylor Sheridan interprets Costner’s character.
In the photo from the first new episode, Rainmaker looks at both the property plans and the property of Yellowstone Ranch.
Rip Wheeler and troubled teenager Carter become a family
Rip Wheeler (Cole Hauser) was against the decision of his then fiancée Beth Dutton (Kelly Reilly) to bring the troubled teenager Carter (Finn Little) home and stay with them.
But the totally unconventional couple has become a non-traditional family. Carter, who Rip now calls “son,” has agreed to work on the ranch and learn some of Rip’s life lessons along the way. Judging by the exclusive photo of Rip next to a sleeping Finn, the hard work and family bonding will continue until the end of Season 5, maybe even beyond.
While Paramount Network has claimed since May 2023 that the second half of Season 5 will be the final season of “Yellowstone,” recent media reports, starting with Hollywood newsletter Puck, have said there are negotiations to create a Season 6 of “Yellowstone” centered around the power couple Rip and Beth. Paramount Network declined to comment on these reports.
Why is Kevin Costner leaving “Yellowstone”?
Costner has clashed with “Yellowstone” creator Taylor Sheridan over creative and scheduling issues, a disagreement that has been exacerbated by Costner’s ambitions to create, direct and star in the Western film series “Horizon: An American Saga.”
In June, at the end of an extensive media tour for Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1, Costner posted an Instagram video confirming that he would not return to finish the series.
“I just wanted to say this is a starting point,” Costner told USA TODAY about announcing he was leaving the series. “Whatever I was hoping for may not have been there. I don’t want to keep saying, ‘Yeah, I hope I can do it.’ That’s drifted to a point where I don’t think it’s realistic anymore.”