John Dutton in the second half of ‘Yellowstone’ season 5, despite Kevin Costner’s absence

Are you still confused?

Today, Paramount Network released an “explosive” new trailer for the second part of its long-gestating, top-secret fifth season of Yellowstone .

You might be surprised to see that Costner’s face is plastered on a YouTube clip, and Paramount made a concerted effort to show that John Dutton will appear in the season, even if Kevin Costner won’t.

Do we really need this reminder? And is it necessary to be so blatant?

Dutton Sage cannot proceed without addressing the elephant in the room.

What happened to John Dutton that explains why Kevin Costner is no longer involved with the series?

Behind-the-scenes events that viewers may never fully understand drove the decision, and an understanding — whatever that may be — was said to be reached by all parties.

Costner’s face even remains this The de facto image of Yellowstone’s key art.

Sure, there’s a new poster that looks like Rip buried someone in the family plot, but while the remaining cast members are up for the challenge of bringing it all home and possibly continuing the story, you’d think they’d at least Updated key art.

Will the trailer explode? Is that an appropriate description of it?

Not really. Things are so secretive that what’s shown in the trailer could be from any other season.

The Duttons have always They had been at odds with each other on various fronts as they fought for Yellowstone.

Beth and Jamie have been feuding since they were teenagers. Beth has been taking care of Kathy. Rip has been taking care of Beth.

Thomas Rainwater and Mo Brings Plenty have been salivating over the return of Dutton lands to the reservation.

The photos themselves, and how they’re numbered, may say more about the upcoming second half of the season than the trailer does.

For example, the photo of Beth and Rip hugging each other appears to be from Yellowstone Season 5 Episode 13.

This suggests that they were still standing guard and may even have been responsible for managing the ranch.

But perhaps most telling is the photo of Jamie Dutton and two law enforcement officers walking down the Capitol stairs toward Lynette (from Yellowstone Season 5 Episode 9).

You see pictures like this when a revered person takes his last breath and causes the changing of the guard.

In his official capacity, even if the governor is aware of the acrimonious relationship between Jamie and other members of the Dutton family, the family’s future may be in his hands – at least for the time being.

So while Kevin Costner won’t technically appear in the remainder of Yellowstone season 5 (though he’s still listed as a showrunner), the essence of John Dutton will drive every scene .

When such an important star is at the center of such an intense story, it makes sense to let his face drive the marketing effort.

We don’t know what will happen in the future, and production and cast are still deciding whether the show will continue and Beth and Rip will take the show in a new and exciting direction.

To get there, we need to close John Dutton’s chapter on the Yellowstone universe.

It’s been five seasons, but John’s life may finally go the way of the prequels, where we see the Duttons face harsh weather and even crueler deaths.

Times have never been easy for the Dutton family, but it looks like things will be different for John Dutton. It looks like he’s going to stand out.

With Costner gone, that seems unlikely, but with any luck, the next generation of the Dutton family will carry the torch for him and his ancestors in Yellowstone.

A new episode of Yellowstone will air on Sunday, November 10 at 8/7c on Paramount Network.

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