‘He Lunged at Him’: Kevin Costner Reportedly Nearly Came to Blows with ‘Yellowstone’ Co-Star Before Exiting Series Amid ‘Ego’ Battle with Show Creator
Rumors about Kevin Costner‘s time on the hit drama “Yellowstone” are not working in his favor following new reports that he nearly came to blows with a co-star.
The 69-year-old actor officially announced his departure from the hit modern-day western series in June 2024 after almost five seasons. Months later, he found himself at the center of allegations about his obnoxious accommodations for pay and an alleged fall out with “Yellowstone” creator Taylor Sheridan.
But a new report claims Costner nearly came to blows with his co-star, Wes Bentley, while on set.
Costner played the patriarch, John Dutton, on the Paramount drama as well as an executive producer, and between takes, he tried to convince Bentley — who played his son, Jamie Dutton, on the show — to ignore Sheridan’s script and do the scene his way.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the drama reportedly left “Flight” actress Kelly Reilly in tears after Bentley refused to do the scene Costner’s way, which led to a heated confrontation as the two men were reportedly screaming in each other’s faces.
“Kevin didn’t like that, and he lunged at him,” an unnamed witness reportedly said of the fight. “No fists were thrown, but they were in each other’s faces, pushing and shoving and just getting hot until they had to be separated.”
Production of “Yellowstone” was shut down temporarily until everyone calmed down.
Daily Mail readers are still pissed about Costner’s removal from the show, suggesting an insider is trying to tear down his reputation and legacy.
“Kevin was the show. Rip and Beth added to the drama. Wes was a worm,” said one person.
Another claimed, “Someone in the Yellowstone world really is trying to take Kevin down. Just because he left the series, which was a result of timing of other commitments due to the writers’ strike.”
A third declared, “Kevin made the show. It was not Yellowstone without him or his character. When he left so did I.”
But his behavior is not entirely off from people who have watched Cosnter in films for decades.
“I have always found Costner’s arrogance very off putting. He can make some good movies but there is just something that kind of just tolerates him in a film,” wrote one critic.
Another said, “I used to really like Kevin Costner, and then I heard a few long interviews and his arrogance (disguised as humility and “aw shucks”) totally turned me off.”
Despite being the star of “Yellowstone,” Costner was written out of the series after he and Sheridan couldn’t agree on scheduling for the final season, disappointing fans of the show.
Costner told Esquire that when production was shut down for a full 14 months, he filmed his movie, “Horizon,” during the show’s hiatus. He said he would even left his own movie set to satisfy their scheduling changes but they kept changing.
“It all happened because they shut down one whole season, didn’t tell anybody, and I didn’t work for 14 months,” Costner revealed in May 2024. “I said, ‘I can’t ever go through that again, where you shut down for over a year, and I don’t have something in line to do.’ All I did was protect myself.”
The “Bodyguard” actor spoke about the off-screen drama months later during an interview with Gayle King. Things quickly turned sour things got spicy after the “CBS Mornings” host suggested that Costner’s and Sheridan’s “big egos” may have been the culprit of the show’s demise.
“Both at the top of their game, and that right now, maybe the two of you were playing a game of who’s is bigger. Do you see it that way?”
“I don’t,” Costner replied as King then further explained what had been said regarding the show behind the scenes.
“But the characterization of you isn’t necessarily flattering,” she told Costner. “You made demands, you want to have a certain schedule, you want to shoot at a certain time, you want certain money. If it’s not that hard, why can’t the two of you be able to work it out? People would love to see that.”
At that moment, Costner didn’t hold back, delivering the fiery retort: “It’s not therapy, Gayle. We’re not going to discuss this on the show.”
But he didn’t completely shut the door, suggesting he could return to the series under favorable circumstances.
“The idea of going back, I would do that in a second if I felt that it was… something that I could do, wanted to do. I would make it fit,” Costner stated.