By David Hookstead

Copyright outkick

Kevin Costner opened up about his life after “Yellowstone,” and his comments might have fans a bit confused. Costner left the legendary neo-Western series created by Taylor Sheridan after the first half of season five, and I think it’s safe to say there was a clear decline. Personally, I didn’t mind the ending because it was clearly foreshadowed, but let’s all be honest, it would have been better with Costner involved. I think we can all admit that. Kevin Costner reflects on “Yellowstone” exit. Costner spoke with the Radio Times about what comes next for him, and said the following: “I’m willing to do anything where I feel like what I’m doing is for myself. It doesn’t have to be a Western, it could be something else. But when something is no longer interesting to me, or there’s some other reason that I need to move on, I’m willing to do that. I think you can write a short story and it can live forever. You can write a novel and it can live forever. You can make a short movie and it can live forever. It’s about how you’re telling it. It’s about if other people are going to be able to relate to it and move to it. That’s why there are certain books that continue to live with us, that we pass on to our children.” Alright, all good there. It was the comments he followed up with that makes absolutely no sense at all. Costner continued, “I think the hope for me is that I can stay relevant; not only to myself, but to people who find my work. I can’t create work that I think is going to find them. I can only create work that when they do find it, it reflects what I was feeling and my sensibility. And hopefully they’re moved by it.” Huh? Costner wants to remain relevant? Interesting. If only there were a way for him to do that while being the face of the most-watched show on TV and earning tens of millions of dollars while doing it. Oh, wait, he did have a way to get that done! He could have stayed on “Yellowstone” for several more years. If Costner’s goal is to remain relevant, I’m fairly certain the show that made him mega-famous again would be a good place to start. Instead, Costner dipped from “Yellowstone” after nonstop drama, did his “Horizon” franchise, it bombed in comical fashion and it’s unclear if it will even be finished. The man responsible for playing John Dutton didn’t just fumble the bag. He is responsible for an all-time bad self-own. The fact he’s now talking about staying relevant is wildly tone-deaf. Best of luck to Costner moving forward, but something tells me it’s going to be incredibly hard for him to ever find elite success again like he had with Sheridan. A truly cautionary tale. Let me know at David.Hookstead@outkick.com if you agree.