Luke Grimes Says He Hasn't Talked toYellowstoneDad Kevin Costner Since Actor Left the Series

Mar. 15, 2025

Luke Grimes as Kayce Dutton and Kevin Costner as John Dutton in ‘Yellowstone’ season 2.Photo:Paramount/Kobal/Shutterstock

Paramount/Kobal/Shutterstock

There’s definitely some distance growing betweenKevin Costnerand hisYellowstonefamily.

“It’s not a case of any hard feelings or anything. It’s just — he’s Kevin Costner,” Grimes, 40, continued to say of Costner, 69.

Grimes said that “none” of the cast “saw it coming the way it did,” regarding the drama surrounding Costner’s eventual departure. TheHorizon: An American Sagadirector repeatedly claimed that schedule conflicts were the reason behind his exit, and told PEOPLE in Junehe was “disappointed” that nobody “ever stepped up to defend” himamidst the rumors.

“Obviously there was news about possible blowups behind the scenes or whatever,” Grimes said. “But just like in life, man, these things happen. They happen fast and they’re not predictable.”

Kevin Costner and Luke Grimes in ‘Yellowstone’.Paramount Network

He compared the situation to the death ofhis fatherin 2022 as he said, “In life, these things happen and then people have to start making decisions. And in our littleYellowstoneworld, that helped ramp the show up into a boil.”

Though he has Costner’s phone number, it’s unlikely theFifty Shades of Greyalum will be reaching out. “He’s a big deal,” Grimes told the outlet. “I just don’t feel like it’s my place to reach out. He can reach out to me if he wants to.”

Luke Grimes for Men’s Health.Ruben Chamorro for Men’s Health

Ruben Chamorro for Men’s Health

Grimes previously told PEOPLE that his costar’s exit had “a finality to it” as it helped the reality ofYellowstone’s conclusion sink in.

“He’s a big presence, man, guy’s an icon.So not having him around to set felt a little different,” he said.

It also lent itself to the end of the story, though. “Him not coming back felt like, ‘Okay, we’re going to have to land this plane now for real,'” Grimes continued. “I think the patriarch leaving was always going to be part of the story. That’s always where it was headed is like, what do these kids do? What does this family do when their rock is gone?”

Luke Grimes and Kelsey Asbille in ‘Yellowstone’ season 5.Paramount+

Paramount+

After Costner’s character’s fate was revealed in the long-awaited premiere of season 5B, Grimes responded to the “negative reactions” as he told PEOPLE, “I think [fans] feel sort of cheated, and what I would say to that is — I think we were all lucky to have Kevin on the show as long as we did.”

“It was always the plan for him to have to go awayfor the story to really ramp up,” he continued of how the death set up the remaining episodes, which aired weekly throughthe Dec. 15 series finale. “You lose a patriarch of the family. Can the kids do it on their own?”

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Yellowstonecan be streamed in full on Peacock.

source: people.com