Very rarely does a show end prematurely when it’s one of the highest-rated series on television. But that fate may soon befall “Yellowstone,” the Paramount Network hit from Taylor Sheridan.

Deadline is reporting that the series, which is expected to premiere the second part of its fifth season later this year, will soon end in its current form. However, Sheridan and Paramount Global will continue the franchise — which has already launched prequel series “1883” and “1923” — via a new show about the central Dutton family, with Matthew McConaughey in talks to star.

“We have no news to report. Kevin Costner is a big part of ‘Yellowstone’ and we hope that’s the case for a long time to come,” a Paramount Network spokesperson told IndieWire in a statement. “Thanks to the brilliant mind of Taylor Sheridan, we are always working on franchise expansions of this incredible world he has built. Matthew McConaughey is a phenomenal talent with whom we’d love to partner.”

According to Deadline, the move to end the original “Yellowstone” show stems from issues with Kevin Costner, who leads the cast as Dutton patriarch John Dutton III. Reportedly, Costner has had disagreements with production over shooting schedules for the series; initially, Costner only spent 65 days of shooting on the series during its initial seasons. For the first part of Season 5, Costner reportedly demanded that be reduced to 50 days, and for the second batch of episodes, he requested that he only spend a week filming.

Reportedly, Costner’s demands regarding his filming schedule has caused tension between him and Sheridan and his fellow cast members, with the Paramount Network declining and making the decision to move on to a new show in the franchise. It’s unclear which of the other cast members of “Yellowstone” — which also stars Luke Grimes, Kelly Reilly, Wes Bentley, Cole Hauser, Kelsey Asbille, and Gil Birmingham — will make the transition, but Deadline says “big stars” from the original show will move over to the new one.

Since it first premiered in 2018, “Yellowstone” has grown to become one of the biggest shows on cable, building its audience with each subsequent season. Season 5 debuted last November with a 9.41 million viewership for its premiere, becoming the show’s highest-rated episode; subsequent episodes of the series garnered a 7-8 million audience on linear viewership. The show’s runaway success has made Sheridan one of Paramount’s biggest talents, with the creator setting the “1883” and “1923” spinoffs at the Paramount+ streamer, with the latter renewed for a second season. Two other spinoffs are in development, and Sheridan also has unrelated shows like “Mayor of Kingstown” and “Tulsa King” airing on the streamer, with “Lioness” starring Nicole Kidman expected to premiere later this year.

Sheridan showruns “Yellowstone” and co-created the series with John Linson. The series is produced by 101 Studios and MTV Entertainment Studios and is executive produced by Sheridan, Costner, Linson, Art Linson, David C. Glasser, Bob Yari, and Stephen Kay.

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