What Happened to Kevin Costner's Yellowstone Character? John Dutton's Fate Revealed After Actor's Exit

Warning: This story contains spoilers for part 2 of Yellowstone season 5.

Yellowstone answered a major question surrounding the fate of star Kevin Costner's character John Dutton III when the series returned for the final half of its last season. Yet, it's safe to say fans aren't happy about it.

During the season 5B premiere airing on Sunday, Nov. 10, Costner's character John Dutton was unexpectedly killed off just minutes into the episode.

The Dutton patriarch was found dead of a fatal gunshot wound. His death was initially believed to be a suicide but it's revealed that John was killed in a murder-for-hire scheme that Sarah Atwood (Dawn Olivieri) arranged, which was meant to make it look like John took his own life. (Sarah is the girlfriend of estranged Dutton brother Jamie, who is played by Wes Bentley.)

Costner's character is never shown in these moments, with viewers only getting glimpses of a limp body beside a gun. But the reactions from those who loved John were very real, as Beth Dutton (Kelly Reilly) vowed to kill Jamie before letting out an agonizing scream upon being reunited with her husband Rip (Cole Hauser).

Fans voiced their reactions to the show's decision to kill off John across X (formerly known as Twitter), with many dissatisfied with how the choice was handled.

"John Dutton deserved to go out like a gladiator, not a victim. Completely undoes the series. I’m not a fan at all how #Yellowstone handled Costner’s departure," one user said.

"If THAT'S how they decide to end a great character like John Dutton... THAT'S BULLS----," a second fan said while another person wrote, "Shame on you Taylor Sheridan. Boooooooo!!! He deserved better. And he should’ve been on this season. America can vote you out too!" 

On the contrary, one fan pointed out, "Anybody who is surprised that John Dutton was killed off in the first episode of this final season of @Yellowstone hasn’t been paying attention. Kevin Costner was too into his other project to finish the Dutton story so Taylor Sheridan did what he had to. On to the next…"

Breaking down the controversial decision made by series creator Taylor Sheridan, Christina Voros — who directed four of the six remaining episodes — told The Hollywood Reporter how they "think Taylor’s decision to begin this way was incredibly brave."

"I think it is [a] testament to his faith in the characters and the actors who embody them to go, 'Let’s not make this about the incident. Let’s make this about how these human beings exist in the aftermath,'" Voros continued. "That was more interesting to [Taylor] than the incident itself."

Voros added, "Death and birth are the two constants in our human experience. They are the most pivotal moments in our lives, and yet they are the most pedestrian elements of being a human being. What’s interesting about birth and death is not the birth and death itself, but the way it affects us as people. To me, I think that was the driving force in telling the story this way. He’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."

Costner played Yellowstone patriarch John Dutton III for five seasons from 2018 to 2022. However, he exited the Western drama before its intended conclusion. Production on the final season 5 episodes then began in May.

In June, Costner told PEOPLE that he kept Yellowstone a priority for over a year awaiting the next season’s scripts and schedule, but he said that the real reason behind his exit was because "the scripts weren't there."

"There was a moment where that show for me stopped for 14 months... That's the fact. I could have done a lot of things in that time, but I wasn't aware that that [hold-up] was going to happen," he said. He added that he was "disappointed" by the narrative that emerged around his departure that he and Sheridan had creative differences.

Costner told PEOPLE that he "loved the show" and would be open to returning. "I've always felt that…It might be an interesting moment to come back and finish the mythology of this modern-day family. And if that happens, I would step into it if I agreed with how it was being done," he shared.

Ahead of the season 5B premiere, series director Christina Voros told The Hollywood Reporter that John Dutton's "presence is integral" to the final episodes, despite Costner's departure. "I think to say any more than that would potentially compromise all the work that went into redacting the scripts," she said, adding that "he is the patriarch and his presence is an essential component to the story."

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Yellowstone airs Sundays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Paramount Network.