For the first time, Kevin Costner publicly shared his side of the ongoing conflict with the popular television program Yellowstone.
On Friday, Costner spoke at his divorce hearing, and the topic of his finances from the Paramount Network series—now the most-watched drama on television—came up during the testimony.
The 68-year-old Golden Globe-winning Yellowstone actor reportedly told People (along with other sources) that he would sue the program to resolve their disputes. After Paramount "walked away" from discussions, Costner claimed he is due $12 million for the fifth season's second half, which has not yet been filmed.
I'm a little disappointed that I won't be appearing on the top television program, said Costner, whose 19-year marriage to Christine Baumgartner ended in divorce in May. "I'll probably take it to court," you said.
Both Costner's and Paramount's representatives remained silent.
Since late last year, when the first half of season five aired, Yellowstone has been on hiatus. The cause of the delay has been somewhat ambiguous; sources from the production have cited the actor's busy schedule; sources from the actor's camp have charged that showrunner Taylor Sheridan took on too many projects; and Sheridan himself has pointed to Paramount's increasing demands for more content for its streaming service.
One reason is that Costner secured a deal to work on his long-term goal, a four-part movie series called Horizon, the first of which, Horizon: An American Saga, has already wrapped production. Costner claimed that he changed his production schedule with Horizon once it was decided last year to divide Yellowstone season five into two seasons. But the second half of the season's scripts weren't ready when he was ready to start shooting. The news that the show would cease with season five's second half shocked viewers in May.
In spite of his desire to return for season 6, Costner stated, "I couldn't help them any more. We attempted to reach an agreement, but there were problems with the creative, and they offered me less money than in prior seasons.
The showrunner provided his perspective in The Hollywood Reporter's cover story profile of Sheridan.
In order to concentrate on his films, the actor had asked to work fewer and fewer days on Yellowstone during the previous seasons, which infuriated the producers, according to Sheridan.
Sheridan, who is now penciled in to support the WGA strike, stated that during their most recent talk, Kevin mentioned having a passion project that he wanted to direct. When he finished working on Yellowstone, he and the network were at odds. We did just that after I said, "We can certainly work a schedule toward [his preferred exit date]."
Though the scripts are not yet finished, there are ongoing conversations to try to persuade Costner to film a few scenes to wrap up his character.
As an actor, Kevin still doesn't have a different place in Sheridan's eyes. "His invention, John Dutton, is powerful and meaningful. Kevin and I have never had a problem that we couldn't resolve over the phone. However, when attorneys get involved, people lose the ability to communicate with one another, start saying things that aren't true, and try to transfer responsibility based on how the media or general public appears to be responding. I don't think anyone deserves it, but he took a lot of stuff in stride. He appears to be really focused on his movie and wants to change the subject. I sincerely hope [the film] is both worthwhile and enjoyable.
Sheridan continues, "I am disappointed. "It breaks apart his character's resolution. It truncates it rather than changing it.
Sheridan made it clear that John Dutton wouldn't survive the series' climax and that the movie's original ending still applies to Yellowstone. The initial intention, it seems, was to have Costner stay around for seven seasons. However, if Costner's role is actually wrapped up in season five, his testimony in court today suggests that it was a fairly large reduction.
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