Taylor Sheridan Has Been Hinting at the End of ‘Yellowstone’ For Years

Taylor Sheridan has found unimaginable success with his neo-western, Yellowstone. The actor-turned-writer/director created the top-rated drama on television, which resulted in a massive nine-figure deal with Paramount to create an entire universe for their streamer, Paramount+. Now, it looks like the flagship series is about to come to an end. Or at least undergo some major changes.

Taylor Sheridan wants to continue moving the Dutton story forward

Sheridan reportedly had a five-season plan for Yellowstone when he pitched the series to Paramount in 2017, along with Kevin Costner (John Dutton) attached to the project as the series’ star. But when Yellowstone jumped to the top of the ratings at the end of season 4, the future of the series became more uncertain. 

At that time, Cheat Sheet revealed that the Texas native thought he could continue the Dutton story for another two seasons — ending with season 6. The one thing he wanted to avoid was letting the show stagnate instead of moving the story forward.

“You can’t walk in circles, waiting to get there, because the show will stagnate. So, you have to keep moving forward, and there have to be consequences in the world, and there has to be an evolution toward a conclusion,” Sheridan explained. “You have to move in a straight line toward that end.”

The ‘Yellowstone’ creator has been hinting at the end of the show for years

Sheridan doesn’t want to “cheapen the product” by extending Yellowstone indefinitely, and he wants the original series to end on an upswing instead of a “plateau or descent.” He told The New York Times in 2021 that he was already writing to the end of the story that he already had in mind. 

“Well, I know how it ends. I’m writing to that ending. There’s only so much hovering one can do before the story starts to lose its locomotion; you can’t put it in neutral just because it’s successful. It will go as many years as it takes for me to tell the story, but you’re not going to see nine seasons of it. No way,” Sheridan said.

Taylor Sheridan could end ‘Yellowstone’ soon in an unexpected way

According to Deadline, the latest news from the Yellowstone world is that Sheridan and Paramount are making moves to end the flagship series in its current form. What does that mean, exactly? Well, that means the exit of Costner’s John Dutton. Then, they will extend the franchise and continue the Dutton saga with new lead, Matthew McConaughey.

It’s still unclear which cast members will move to the new version of Yellowstone. But, the expectation is that the show’s biggest stars — like Kelly Reilly, Cole Hauser, Wes Bentley, Luke Grimes, and Gil Birmingham — will be included.

Insiders claim that Costner — who originally was limited to shooting 65 days per season of Yellowstone — only wanted to shoot for 50 days for the first part of season 5. Then, he wanted to return for just one week to shoot his scenes for the second half.

Costner’s schedule troubles come from the fact that he is directing and starring in his own western epic Horizon, and has seemingly made Yellowstone and John Dutton a low priority. Rumor has it, this has caused some moral problems on the Yellowstone set. 

Fans should prepare for the strong possibility that Yellowstone in its current form will end with the season 5 finale this summer. But the next chapter of the Dutton saga with a new series lead is likely coming soon. McConaughey is currently in negotiations to finalize his deal.

Yellowstone Season 5 will return to Paramount Network this summer for part two.