‘Yellowstone’ star Luke Grimes gets blunt on Kevin Costner’s exit: ‘Easier’ without ‘conflict’

nypost.com:

Esquire about Costner’s controversial departure from the show.“Hopefully everyone can see that it was time,” Grimes said in the interview, which published Tuesday. “To be really honest, there was a part of Kevin being gone that meant some of the conflict was gone.”“Obviously, it didn’t make it super fun to be around,” Grimes continued. “Not pointing any fingers, but it was actually the easiest season we’ve filmed.”Costner left “Yellowstone” after filming only the first half of Season 5 and moved on to focus on his new Western film series, “Horizon.”The Oscar winner has denied that he quit the show because of an alleged feud with creator Taylor Sheridan.

During the Season 5B premiere that aired Nov. 11, Costner’s John Dutton was murdered in a plot orchestrated by lawyer Sarah Atwood (Dawn Olivieri), sparking significant fan backlash.Costner weighed in on John’s death on SiriusXM’s “The Michael Smerconish Program” and revealed that he didn’t get a heads up about his character’s fate.“I didn’t see it.

I heard it’s a suicide. That doesn’t make me wanna rush to go see it,” he said.At the 2024 Governors Awards on Nov. 17, Costner acknowledged it was the producers’ call to decide what to do with John.“Who am I?

They do what they want. That’s fine with me,” the star said.With only one episode left of “Yellowstone,” Grimes told Esquire that he’s ready to say goodbye to the show that’s dominated his life since 2018.“It feels like good timing.