Actor Wes Bentley Shrugs Off ‘Yellowstone’ Rumors: ‘Probably a Bit of Drama Over Nothing’

An early February report from Deadline that a negotiations deadlock might bring Yellowstone to an end has had fans anxious about the future of the show, but actor Wes Bentley, who plays Jamie Dutton, says that viewers likely have nothing to worry about.

"The news that's come out recently about the show is, you know, it's above my pay grade. Different people making decisions," Bentley recently told EW.

"I know that they're still working on...working things out with everyone, to make sure we shoot," he continued. "And I'm confident we will. We always have before. I think it's probably a bit of drama over nothing."

Specifically, that "bit of drama" entails stalled negotiations with the show's star, Kevin Costner, who plays Dutton family patriarch John Dutton on the runaway hit TV series. According to the initial report, Costner has been hoping to negotiate for a shooting schedule of only one week for the back half of Season 5, which is due to premiere this summer.

When he first joined the Yellowstone cast in 2018, Costner asked for a shooting schedule of 65 days per season. In the first half of Season 5, which aired late in 2022, he scaled that number back to 50 days due to the fact that he's currently directing, producing and starring in his own epic Western film called Horizon.

But according to Deadline, the prospect of shaving back Yellowstone filming dates to just one week created a "morale problem" with the rest of the cast, and the network balked at Costner's alleged request, opting to focus instead on tying up the Yellowstone series and replacing it with another show in the same franchise. Deadline suggests that Matthew McConaughey could be the one to star in that new project.

The Yellowstone universe already consists of multiple spinoffs, including 1883, which starred Tim McGraw and Faith Hill. The current prequel is 1923, and at least two more upcoming shows, Bass Reeves and 1666, are in the works.

As part of Taste of Country's comprehensive coverage of all things Yellowstone, check out our Dutton Rules podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.