Kevin Costner Wanted A Completely Different Ending For Yellowstone

Despite the fact he stars in spin-off series "1883," Sam Elliott isn't a huge fan of the show that started it all: "Yellowstone." What's his problem with Taylor Sheridan's massively popular neo-Western series? Well, it's "too much like f***ing 'Dallas'" for Elliott's tastes, which I guess means it's a little too derivative of the CBS soap opera that aired from 1978 to 1991 and perhaps even a little too soapy itself.

"Yellowstone" certainly embraces melodrama, depicting the travails of the Dutton family on their Montana ranch and showcasing some of the most fraught and frankly ridiculous family drama you're ever likely to see on TV. But that's part of the reason the series is so successful. The drama aspect is presumably what kept a large part of the show's audience coming back for more every season. Of course, "Yellowstone" has now ended, finishing up in 2024 with a controversial final season that saw the death of John Dutton, who had previously been portrayed by series lead Kevin Costner.

But even before season 5 part B aired, the show was proving to be almost as dramatic as its soapy narratives behind the scenes. Costner fell out with series creator and writer Taylor Sheridan along with Paramount over scheduling. On one side, the star claimed that since he hadn't even received scripts for the second half of "Yellowstone" season 5, he wasn't able to properly commit to his "Horizon" saga passion project. On the other side, Paramount and Sheridan argued that the "Horizon" project was actually hampering plans for shooting season 5B, contributing to show's strike-induced delays. All of this meant "Yellowstone" ended on a bit of a sour note, with Sheridan choosing to kill off Costner's character in the "Yellowstone" season 5B premiere. Costner himself clearly had his issues with the show and its creator, but he would have liked to have seen things wrapped up differently, though perhaps no less dramatically.

The "Yellowstone" season 5B premiere, "Desire Is All You Need," begins with the revelation that John Dutton has shot himself in the governor's mansion, though the show later confirms that this was anything but suicide. Either way, Kevin Costner's character went out in a sudden and violent manner, which some fans weren't all that pleased with. According to the director, however, Taylor Sheridan had no choice but to off the Dutton patriarch in this way. As Christina Voros said, "To have created this character who is so bold and brave and noble and strong, that the violation of that person being taken off guard when they thought they were safe and experiencing this horrible death, it's supposed to be infuriating."

Costner addressed the backlash over his character's death, saying "Yellowstone" was very much entitled to do what was needed following his departure. "They do what they want to do," he said. "That's fine with me." If he had his way, however, John Dutton and his entire family would have all faced a different conclusion to their story.

Speaking to Entertainment Tonight, Costner praised his former show for depicting "modern-day ranching" so well. "'Yellowstone' was able to capture that so beautifully," he said, before adding, "I mean, it's a bit of a soap opera. We should all be in prison." There's no doubt the Duttons have carried out some horrific acts across five seasons of "Yellowstone," offing their enemies and even family members in pursuit of power and revenge. The whole clan being rounded up and thrown in prison might have been a bit of an anti-climax, though.

"Yellowstone" announced itself as a show that wasn't afraid to kill off characters. The very first episode of the series sees John's son, Lee Dutton (Dave Annable), murdered by a resident of a nearby reservation, beginning the show on a tragic and dramatic note which would carry throughout the five seasons that followed. Things got much worse, though, with Taylor Sheridan seemingly always willing to embrace the soapy style which Sam Elliott found so off-putting.

"Yellowstone" featured some truly wild moments, from Cole Hauser's Rip Wheeler witnessing a couple falling to their deaths to the explosion that could have killed the entire Dutton family at the end of season 3 (they all survived). There's also been unrelenting interpersonal drama among the family members that has reached shockingly violent heights, and some unbelievable murders that definitely should have landed most of the Dutton crew in jail. All of that combined to give "Yellowstone" a soap opera dynamic that seemed at odds with its premium drama presentation. Still, there's no arguing with the show's popularity, and Sheridan clearly knew was he was doing in defining his series' unique tone.

Still, the death of John Dutton remains one of the more controversial choices in that regard, and fans will likely never really get over the abruptness with which a character who arguably became a cultural icon of sorts was killed off. Was this an example of the show's soapy proclivities going too far, or a reasonable response to Costner's inconvenient departure from the show? That's for the viewers to debate, but you can bet Sam Elliott isn't a fan.