Yellowstone fans react as Kevin Costner's fate is confirmed – director explains shocking twist

The western drama has been plagued by rumour and speculation for some time over the status of Costner's involvement. Earlier this year, he put a firm end to the chatter by announcing on social media that his time on Yellowstone was over and that he would instead be focusing on his Horizon series of films.

Nevertheless, some fans still held out hope of a cameo or at the very least felt that the fate of Costner's John Dutton would be a major question hanging over season 5 part 2. That's not the case!

Creator Taylor Sheridan went the exact opposite route, revealing that John was dead and that Sarah Atwood (played by Dawn Olivieri) had orchestrated his murder – instructing the hit man to make sure it resembled a suicide.

During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, executive producer Christina Voros explained the surprising decision by Sheridan to reveal all of these secrets in the very first episode of Yellowstone season 5 part 2.

"What’s interesting about birth and death is not the birth and death itself, but the way it affects us as people," she said. "To me, I think that was the driving force in telling the story this way.

"[Sheridan's] asked, 'How does everybody else survive and what do they do?' And that's where the mystery is. That is where the unraveling is. That is where the story is."

She went on to say that she felt it was an "ingenious" decision to "lay it out straight out of the gate", as it leaves the audience completely in the dark about what the remaining episodes will involve – as she was when she read the scripts.

However, some fans on social media found the twist to be an unpleasant surprise, expressing their opinion that John deserved a more heroic end to his story.

Notably, a lot of the most negative reactions to the episode were posted in the first five minutes or so, before it was revealed that John had not actually killed himself, but had rather been the victim of a targeted assassination.

Others, however, did express their excitement to see where the drama goes from here, with the implication that John's loved ones will be seeking answers and vengeance for his sudden demise.

Yellowstone season 5 part 2 continues Mondays on Paramount Plus. Check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide and Streaming Guide to find out what's on.

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