"This is not therapy" — Kevin Costner rebukes Gayle King for seemingly pressuring him to talk about his exit from Yellowstone

Kevin Costner sat down with Gayle King for CBS Morning for a promotional run of his latest film Horizon: An American Saga. In the interview, published on Thursday, June 27, the actor evaded questions about his exit from Yellowstone.

As King probed for clarity on the real reason the actor exited from Yellowstone, the veteran journalist asked him whether he was simply "playing a game of 'Whose [ego] is bigger?'" with the show's creator Taylor Sheridan.

The actor responded, saying that he "loved the show before anybody," and also adding:

"The idea of going back, I would do that in a second if I felt that it was... If it was something that I could do, wanted to do, and I would make it fit."

But when King pressed on why he and Sheridan couldn't "work it out," if that were the case, further commenting on the less than "flattering" characterization of the actor after he decided to leave the show. Costner refused to answer King's question and promptly shut down the conversation by simply saying:

"This isn't therapy, Gayle. I mean, we're not gonna discuss this on the show. Really."

While the host insisted that she's a "good therapist," the actor was not bothered to comment except what he's already said about the series, that he has "conducted his life in a pretty straightforward way."

Before leaving the hit Paramount series, Kevin Costner played the rancher John Dutton for over four seasons.

---

Kevin Costner talks about his latest movie Horizon

While Kevin Costner was tight-lipped about the rumored feud between him and the Yellowstone creator, he spoke extensively about his latest movie. Talking about Horizon, which is scheduled for a June 28 theatrical release, being his passion project, the actor said:

"1988, I commissioned a story even before Dances with Wolves that I wanted to do. It was kind of a normal Western... I thought it was good, but no one would make it, and I thought, 'Well, then I'll write four more,' see how they like those. No one like that."

But while the project was left on the back burner, Costner mentioned that he "couldn't forget about it." Talking about how it wasn't smooth sailing for him to get the project started, he noted:

"I can't let hard stop me. I can't let people's opinions of what's in vogue, what's happening, what's current, what's trending be my guide."

Describing his latest film, Kevin Costner said "It's not business as usual," adding:

"[Because] women end up somehow dominating Horizon in a really interesting way."

It wasn't particularly the plan for the movie, but when writing the scenes, he said, it wasn't possible to write scenes "without recognizing that women were a part of all these decisions."

When Gayle King asked if his belief was in line with the statement that "when women enter the picture, everything gets better," the actor agreed, saying he couldn't imagine a world without women in it.