Two years after the first half of the fifth season of “Yellowstone” premiered, the second half of the season debuted tonight on the Paramount Network.
With that premiere, Taylor Sheridan’s megahit drama also answered the question that has been lingering for about as long – how would the series handle the absence of Kevin Costner and his lead character John Dutton.
Costner’s exit from the show was formally announced back in May 2023, but it wasn’t clear how it would be done on screen and if he could return for a cameo – an unlikely possibility following his public falling out with Sheridan over his filming commitments to the show and his four-film “Horizon” saga.
So how was it handled? Read ahead and be warned:
MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD FOR “YELLOWSTONE” 5×09
The season premiere answers the question – John Dutton is indeed dead. In the new season Beth (Kelly Reilly) and Kayce (Luke Grimes) arrive at the Governor’s mansion to find their father’s dead body with a gun by his hand.
Beth suspects foul play and it turns out she’s right, it was a hit staged to look like a suicide with the killers hired by John’s scheming estanged son Jamie (Wes Bentley) and his fixer girlfriend Sarah Atwood (Dawn Olivieri). Costner is never shown, though a limp body is briefly glimpsed next to the gun as police swarm the Governor’s mansion.
END SPOILERS
Executive producer Christina Voros tells THR that top-secret protocols were put in place during production of these last six episodes. Scripts were redacted for the cast, alternate scenes were filmed and special code words were used with only the main cast and the essential writers/producers knowing the full story before airing.
“Yellowstone” releases new episodes on Sundays at 8pm on Paramount Network followed by a linear premiere on CBS at 10pm. The series will air its final episode on December 15th.
