Kevin Costner’s John Dutton could appear in the final episodes of Yellowstone after all.
“Kevin has reconsidered his stance on returning to Yellowstone. He will come back if he receives a script he likes and they can agree on the terms,” a source exclusively tells Us Weekly. “There is significant conflict at the moment, and while he is currently not involved, things could change.”
Costner, 69, confirmed his potential interest in returning to Yellowstone Ranch during a Sunday, June 16, interview with CBS Sunday Mornings.
“If I like the story [and] where it was going, I would go back,” he said in the interview, denying that he left the show in order to make his upcoming film Horizon. “I did everything that I was contracted to do with Yellowstone.”
According to the insider, Costner could appear in either a present-day or flashback scene depending on whether he approved of showrunner Taylor Sheridan’s script.
Costner has starred as John Dutton on the Western series since the series began in 2018. Rumors later swirled that Costner allegedly had tension with Sheridan, 54, over the filming schedule, which halted during production on season 5. (The first batch of debut episodes in January 2023, but a premiere date for the remaining episodes has not been announced.)
The source also tells Us that filming for the finale has begun, but the scripts are “still being revised,” leaving “a potential” to write Costner into the scenes.
“Show producers have also shifted their perspective, enhanced that they might need to bring him back to achieve some resolution,” the insider says. “They’ve been working out a way to do without him, but it’s been difficult. There’s a void in the story without him.”
Costner had previously denied that his Yellowstone exit was the result of a feud with Sheridan or his busy schedule with the four-part Horizon.
“I have taken a beating from those f–king guys and I know a lot of times where it’s coming from,” he told Deadline last month of the rumors. “I just elected not to get into that. But if you know me well enough, I made Yellowstone the first priority, and to insinuate anything else would be wrong. I did not initiate any of those things. They did.”
Costner continued, “I left exactly when they wanted, and it made it hard on me. It turns out they didn’t have the scripts for 5B. They needed four more days just to complete the first eight episodes. I left early to give them what they needed to have a complete eight, and I felt bad that the audience didn’t get 10.”
Us Weekly has reached out to respond to Costner and Yellowstone for comment.
