Yellowstone Report Details On-Set Clash Between Kevin Costner And Wes Bentley: 'They Had To Be Separated'

A new bombshell report offers additional details about the on-set tension and behind-the-scenes missteps that led to Kevin Costner's departure from Paramount Network's Yellowstone — and the show's earlier-than-expected conclusion after just five seasons.

Costner's long-running issues with series creator Taylor Sheridan have been widely reported, but we now know that a "work-related argument during an emotional and physically tough scene" also transpired between Costner and co-star Wes Bentley, as confirmed by Bentley's reps.

As detailed by The Hollywood Reporter, the confrontation occurred during a heated scene at the Dutton Ranch involving Costner, Bentley and Kelly Reilly. Costner, who was also an executive producer on the show, reportedly wanted Bentley to ignore what Sheridan wrote in his script, instead performing the scene the way Costner thought it should be performed.

Bentley reportedly told Costner that he signed up to be on Sheridan's show, not Costner's, which Costner didn't appreciate. An eyewitness tells THR that while the confrontation didn't come to fisticuffs, Costner and Bentley "were in each other's faces, pushing and shoving and just getting hot until they had to be separated." Another witness reportedly said Reilly was so upset by the interaction that it brought her to tears.

According to Bentley's reps, the issues between the two actors were "discussed and resolved," but that wasn't the end of Costner's Yellowstone troubles. While negotiating his return for Season 5, Costner reportedly presented the show's producing team with a list of demands that was said to include script approval and a $10 million bonus, which they rejected, hence Costner's exit midway through what would become Yellowstone's final run. Though the show was originally envisioned by Sheridan to run for six seasons, a source tells THR that it could have easily run for seven or eight.

Costner left the show to helm his own $100 million Western dream project, Horizon: An American Saga, which made just $38.7 million. In addition to starring in the project, Costner was also its director, producer and co-writer.

Meanwhile, Yellowstone went on to spawn multiple prequels (1883 and 1923), with several spinoffs on the horizon, including CBS' Y: Marshals, starring Luke Grimes as Kayce Dutton; The Dutton Ranch, starring Reilly and Cole Hauser as Beth Dutton and Rip Wheeler; and The Madison, which follows a new family led by Michelle Pfeiffer.

TVLine has reached out to Paramount for comment.