Kevin Costner didn’t watch John Dutton’s Yellowstone death – and he doesn’t plan to

After everyone had a chance to recover from that wild Yellowstone Season 5 Part 2 opening, Kevin Costner revealed what he knows about John Dutton’s fate – and why he won’t watch it.

Almost two years since Yellowstone was last on screens, Taylor Sheridan‘s flagship Western drama has returned. And boy, what a return it was. Part 2 began by shocking audiences with the death of John Dutton, who was found on his bathroom floor after an alleged suicide attempt.

Fans will know there’s more to it than that – John Dutton was murdered, by Jamie’s slippery girlfriend Sarah Atwood. Even so, John’s end proved to be completely polarizing, with some fans dubbing his ending as “bullsh*t“.

But there’s one major player who hasn’t yet seen John’s bloody demise, and it’s Kevin Costner himself.

“I’m going to be perfectly honest, I didn’t know it was actually airing last night,” he said [via SiriusXM]. “That’s a ‘swear to God’ moment. I mean, I’ve been seeing ads with my face all over the place, and I’m thinking, ‘Gee, I’m not in that one.’ I’m not in this season but I’ve been seeing it.”

Reports of Costner quitting Yellowstone to focus on his four-part Western epic, Horizon: An American Saga, first emerged in 2023. Then, in June 2024, Costner confirmed he wouldn’t be returning to the Dutton ranch. As such, John Dutton was axed.

“I didn’t realize yesterday was the thing,” Costner continued. “My focus has been on what I was having to do. I got a few calls. Sometimes I’m just like a passenger in my life. There’s a lot going on. Somebody said, ‘You know, it played last night’, and I said, ‘Hmm, okay.’ I found out about it this morning actually.

Paramount

When asked if he knew ahead of time how John Dutton would meet his maker, Costner said, “No I didn’t, that’s their business.

“You know, I gave it five seasons. I didn’t even know I was going to even do it that long. There was a couple of times where I talked about possible endings for myself, you know.”

Costner then explained that suicide (real or staged) was never one of his initial suggestions for the character.

“No. Listen, they’re smart people, whatever they’re doing they’ll figure it out. I had come up with two possible endings back when it wasn’t going to go as long as it did go. I heard it’s a suicide, so that doesn’t make me want to rush to go see it.

“Maybe it’s a red herring. Who knows? They’re very good and they’ll figure that out.”

Yellowstone Season 5 Episode 10 airs on November 17 on the Paramount Network (and Kevin Costner definitely won’t be in it).

For more, check out our guides to Billy Klapper, Jamie’s 10-56 call, and find out how to watch Yellowstone where you are.