Hollywood star Kevin Costner is known for his variety of action-oriented roles over the years. A look at the veteran actor’s filmography also indicates a flair for the American Western genre. While Costner completes a successful final season of the hit Western television series Yellowstone, the Water World star has also worked in many other Western films and shows like 1985’s Silverado, and the three-part 2012 History Channel miniseries Hatfields & McCoys with Bill Paxton.
One of Costner’s self-confessed favorite works was the 2003 film Open Range, which he directed and acted in. This film was the beginning of the actor’s love affair with American Westerns and laid the foundation for him to star in many other films in the future along with honoring his father’s wish.
Kevin Costner Was Inspired to Do Open Range Thanks To His Father
In 2003, Kevin Costner directed and acted in the American Western film Open Range. The narrative follows a former gunslinger and Civil War vet played by the Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves star, who is forced back into action to fight a corrupt lawman played by Michael Gambon. Open Range also starred Robert Duvall, Annette Bening, and Diego Luna. The film was a box-office success, grossing over $68 million, and was well-liked by critics and audiences.
Costner, who credited this film as the beginning of his love affair with Westerns, spoke of the influence his father had and his wish to see the Yellowstone actor portray roles of this nature. In an interview with Yahoo Entertainment’s Role Recall in 2014 on the occasion of the 20th year of the film, Costner looked back on the events leading to making Open Range and the impact it had on him going forward in his career.
“My dad really loved John Wayne. And he said to me, ‘You can do that,’”. And of course I can’t be John Wayne. But I have personally taken an interest in the American Western. That final shootout, a lot of people say that they really enjoy that. That’s been ranked as maybe the top shootout. So I’m very proud of that,”
This film was almost a premonition for Kevin Costner by his own admission, as the actor was certain that he would go on to make more projects of this nature along the course of his career.
The Reason For Kevin Costner’s Departure From Yellowstone
The 2nd part of the fifth and final season of the hit Western series Yellowstone starring Kevin Costner, will wrap up after airing in November 2023. The reason for the show not working on a 6th season is due to many factors including the the lead actor Costner’s unavailability to commit to the show in the future. Recently, the star clarified his stance and clearly confirmed the reasons that were involved in his decision to step down from the show.
The Bodyguard star revealed that the two-part format for the fifth season of Yellowstone made scheduling difficult for him as he was already committed to working on his 4-part Western movie series, Horizon: An American Saga which clashed with the shooting schedules for Yellowstone. Costner also revealed that he was dissatisfied with the reduced paycheck that he was offered for the 5th season of Yellowstone which was significantly less than his regular payday of $12 million for the show. All these factors worked towards the celebrity ultimately stepping down from his contract.
Source: Yahoo Entertainment
