(SPOILERS) Fans really wanted to see what happened to Kevin Costner‘s John Dutton: The Sunday return of Yellowstone scored the best-ever season debut for the Paramount Network drama, ABC Audio has confirmed.
According to data from VideoAmp provided by Paramount Network, the first episode of season 5’s back half scored some 16.4 million viewers across both cable and its sister network CBS.
By comparison, the previous high-water mark for Taylor Sheridan‘s neo-Western was the season 5 premiere in November 2022, which was seen by 8.8 million viewers on Paramount Network and 10.3 million viewers across all platforms, according to the trade.
For the record, Costner said he only learned what became of his John Dutton the morning after the show premiered, telling The Michael Smerconish Program, “I mean, I’ve been seeing ads with my face all over the place and I’m thinking, ‘Gee … I’m not in this season."”
He added with a laugh of the character’s demise, “Doesn’t make me want to rush to go see it.”
That said, he added of the show’s producers, “They’re pretty smart people. … They’re very good. And they’ll figure that out.”
He also reiterated the shooting of his Horizon movies didn’t interrupt the shooting of Yellowstone, as was alleged. “There was room, but it was difficult for them to keep their schedule.”
“I didn’t leave. I didn’t quit,” Costner insisted.
The debut episode brings to a head just how far John’s adopted son, Jamie, played by Wes Bentley, was willing to go to bring his dad down.
Bentley tells ABC Audio his journey with the scheming character has been “wild and unexpected.”
He teases the fans, “I always think I know where it’s going. I think I know something about Jamie, and then I get surprised.”
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