Kevin Costner has revealed why he left Yellowstone. The actor admitted on the stand during his divorce proceedings that leaving the series was due to a “long, hard-fought negotiation” over the decision to split season five into two parts.

Also starring Luke Grimes, Kelly Reilly, Wes Bentley, Cole Hauser, Kelsey Asbille, Brecken Merrill, Forrie Smith, Denim Richards, Ian Bohen, Finn Little, Ryan Bingham, Gil Birmingham, Mo Brings Plenty, Wendy Moniz, Jen Landon, Kathryn Kelly, the Paramount Network series follows the Dutton family of the Yellowstone ranch. The fifth season also features Josh Lucas, Jacki Weaver, Kylie Rogers, Kyle Red Silverstein, Rob Kirkland, Kai Caster, Lainey Wilson, Lilli Kay, and Dawn Olivieri.

Costner said he needed to focus on his own project —  the four-part Western movie series Horizon: An American Saga — which didn’t work with filming Yellowstone twice a year. Costner said he changed his schedule to shoot the first part of season five and added “That’s a big deal in this world.”

Per People, Costner admitted on the stand that he wanted to return for a sixth season of the Taylor Sheridan drama but “I couldn’t help them anymore. We tried to negotiate, but they offered me less money than previous seasons, there were issues with the creative…”

Before walking away, Costner said that he made one last effort to come back to the show and told his representatives, “have them pay me whatever number, we came up with a number, and they [Yellowstone] walked away… I’ve been told it’s a little disappointing that [it’s] the #1 show on TV, I’m not participating.”

Costner was reportedly set to receive $12 million for each half of season five. He says that the scripts for the remainder of season five still aren’t written, and he “will probably go to court over” payment for the second half of season five.

Costner’s departure from the series led to the cancellation of the Taylor Sheridan drama, but a sequel series has already been ordered by Paramount Network. Yellowstone episodes stream on NBCUniversal’s Peacock service due to a deal struck before the drama became a hit. The sequel series will likely have its second window on Paramount+, keeping the profits in the Paramount Global family.

What do you think? Are you disappointed that Costner left Yellowstone? What do you think about his reasons for leaving?