MISSOULA — The hit TV show “Yellowstone” returns to downtown Missoula this week to film season 5.

The production is quite large, bringing dozens of support trucks to town along with people from around the world.

Production crews who spoke to MTN said they came from LA, Georgia, the UK, and even locals from Butte.

The entire production has been shrouded in secrecy, with much of the crew not knowing the details of the shoots until shortly before they took place.

However, the production hasn’t brought excitement to some local businesses. Several told MTN that they haven’t seen an increase in business due to the large amount of parking taken up by the production, which has reduced foot traffic in the area.

Despite this, a recent study from UM’s Bureau of Business and Economic Research showed that in just one year, the show brought more than $730 million in spending to the state.

“Yellowstone” stars Kevin Costner, Luke Grimes, Kelly Reilly, Wes Bentley, and Cole Hauser. It is rumored that Costner will not be returning for the final season.

Considering its new episodes regularly pulled in some of television’s biggest viewership numbers, Yellowstone isn’t a show anyone expected to suffer a nearly two-year hiatus in the midst of its fifth season. Yet here we are, with the western drama’s final episodes still unfilmed, but what’s this? Yes, it’s actual evidence that production on the remaining episodes is indeed set to begin very soon, possibly with hints of Kevin Costner’s return as John Dutton.

When Will Yellowstone’s Season 5 Production Finally Start Again?
Paramount Network’s execs announced in November 2023 that the final episodes were set to air starting in November 2024, with two further spinoffs being added to the upcoming Yellowstone series slate in the same announcement. Since that time, reports indicated that Taylor Sheridan & Co. were planning to return to filming in the spring, with April noted early on as a desired window. Now, it’s been confirmed that filming will be underway by Thursday, May 23, though that’s not necessarily the official start date by any means.

Despite the production kicking off a month or so after prior assumptions, that should still give the creative team enough time to knock out filming the remaining installments with enough time to still safely make the November premiere window. Of course, that all comes down to how complicated Sheridan made this final chapter, knowing that the flagship drama would be closing out with whatever goes down. It’s a lot of pressure, by any stretch.

What’s The Evidence Proving Yellowstone Is Filming Soon?
The latest Yellowstone update thankfully doesn’t come from unsubstantiated insiders’ claims, but from an actual show-connected source. The “Yellowstone Extras Casting” Facebook page released its first pair of casting calls for background actors since the initial production hiatus began in September 2022.

The first notice was for a host of different types of extras for a scene that seemingly takes place within a fancy restaurant, which is set to be filmed on Thursday, May 23. Before that, though, the team is looking for someone to serve as a male double with the following attributes: being 5’9”, 125-140 lbs, with brown hair. It’s not 100% clear if that workday will include filming scenes, but it’s only for the one day, so it would appear so.

Perhaps worth noting: while the upscale restaurant filming is set to take place in Missoula, the other assignment is set for Sula, a small community located near the Idaho border that was only formally established via census in 2010, despite first attaining its distinct name around 1889. It’s a spot known to give visitors plenty of chances to ski and hike down and up the area’s mountains, with the Lost Trail Hot Springs offering a peaceful respite from more intense activities.

How Do The New Details Hint At Kevin Costner’s Return As John Dutton?
Though it seemed for many months as if Kevin Costner’s John Dutton would be written out of the mothership drama without the Oscar-winning actor returning, as a result of his rumored feuding with co-creator Taylor Sheridan behind the scenes. Costner then spun those expectations upside-down by revealing he wants to return if possible, though no one else involved with the show has shed any light on whether or not it’s actually happening.