Yellowstone: Behind-the-Scenes Drama Continues at PaleyFest

Yellowstone may be the biggest show on cable TV, but Taylor Sheridan’s mega-hit series has hit a bit of a rough patch in the middle of its fifth season. There have been numerous reports about friction with star Kevin Costner about the show’s difficult shooting schedule, prompting the idea that he may be leaving the series entirely. There are also reports floating around that Yellowstone will be coming to an end after Season 5 (which still hasn’t been completed) and that Paramount will essentially reboot it without Costner.

No one knows what exactly is going on with Yellowstone, but the cast and crew didn’t help all the rumors this weekend. Sheridan, Costner, and the entire lineup of Yellowstone stars were set to appear at PaleyFest for a panel about the series. 30 minutes before the panel began on Saturday, however, press in attendance were informed almost none of them were coming.

According to Variety, press found out on the event’s red carpet that only four members of the Yellowstone cast would be in attendance: Josh Lucas, Wendy Moniz, Mo Brings Plenty, and Dawn Olivieri. The original lineup included Sheridan, Costner, Kelly Reilly, Cole Hauser, Luke Grimes, Kelsey Asbille, Wes Bentley, Gil Birmingham, Jackie Weaver, and executive producer David Glasser. Variety was told “scheduling conflicts” were behind all of the absences.

The cast list wasn’t updated by PaleyFest, so fans showed up to find out the people they paid to see weren’t actually going to be there. Fans on Twitter talked about paying big money for tickets and driving multiple hours to PaleyFest, only to miss out on what they thought they were paying for.

The second half of Yellowstone Season 5 was supposed to air on the Paramount Network this summer, but there’s no chance of that happening now. Filming on the new episodes hasn’t even started yet, and the talent that did make it to PaleyFest confirmed that they haven’t received a start date for the rest of Season 5. 

Keith Cox, Paramount Network development president, said at the beginning of the panel that he was “very confident” Costner is still committed to the series.