Note: The following story contains spoilers from Yellowstone Season 5, Episode 9
“Yellowstone” is finally back. And with it comes a new mystery — how, exactly, did the Taylor Sheridan juggernaut (the single most popular show on television) write off its biggest star?
If you’ve been following along since the last episode of “Yellowstone” aired way back on Jan. 1, 2023), you know that Kevin Costner, who played patriarch John Dutton on the series, has been at odds with Sheridan. This had to do with the amount of time that the show was requiring of Costner, who was attempting to launch his own franchise with the “Horizon” films. (Two have been shot, one has actually been released theatrically. He still hopes to find funding for parts two and three.) When the two reached an impasse, it was announced that Costner had left the show. He said that his work was in the movies anyway.
With Costner very much alive in the last batch of episodes, which we’ll refer to as 5A, and early marketing materials heavily featuring the star, you might be wondering: how exactly does “Yellowstone” handle his departure? Well, we’re ready to tell you.
Did “Yellowstone” they kill off John Dutton?
Yes.
Is he really dead? No funny business? No coming back from beyond the veil?
Nope.
How did they kill him?
In the episode’s cold open, John’s body is discovered. It’s a bloody scene, viscera splashed on the walls, all of that. You don’t see Costner’s face, but you see that it’s John. And it’s quickly relayed that “the 26th governor of Montana” (remember that John was elected governor in 5A) is no more. He dies at the governor’s mansion, not the Dutton ranch. Enough horrible stuff has happened there.
Did they say what happened to him though?
Before the cold open is even over, two narratives emerge — the official story is that John killed himself. Of course, Beth (Kelly Reilly) thinks that Jamie (Wes Bentley) set it up. It’s easy to see why, the two were at odds and towards the end of 5A it seemed like he was going to take the next step and off his dad. Sweet, trusting Kayce (Luke Grimes) doesn’t know what to believe. He’s always trying to keep the peace, and boy is he torn. Beth urges Rip (Cole Hauser), who is down at the 6666 ranch in Texas, to come back. And yes we briefly see our favorite Jimmy (Jefferson White), still waiting for that spinoff that was announced years ago. Anyway…
Did Jamie actually order the hit on his dad?
No. Instead, it was evil sexy Sarah Atwood (Dawn Olivieri) who ordered the hit. She meets up with Jamie and says, “Isn’t this what you wanted?” And he says, “No.” And starts to cry. She tells him that lions don’t die of old age, they die in the jaws of younger lions.
What’s next?
Beth and Kayce are back at the Dutton Ranch. Neither of them believe that John committed suicide. And while Beth is insistent that Jamie had something to do with it, she also acknowledges that he can’t do anything by himself. They decide that they need to go look Jamie in the eyes to decide whether he had something to do with John’s murder of he was just an innocent rube.
Then, Beth says, they can decide how to kill Jamie. Rip then joins them. End of episode. Things are going to get ugly.
“Yellowstone airs Sundays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Paramount Network.
