On the blockbuster series “Yellowstone,” Kevin Costner plays the unrelenting John Dutton, family patriarch and owner of the largest ranch in the United States. In real life, the veteran actor has had an equally persistent drive to succeed in Hollywood, with a career that spans five decades and includes two Academy Awards and an Emmy, among other accolades.
It’s a drive that can’t help but be admired by “Yellowstone” co-star Luke Grimes, who plays Costner’s on-screen son, Kayce Dutton. On the show, which airs Sundays on Paramount Network, the pair share a special bond, despite having a complex and sometimes tense relationship. In real life, the two actors have made a connection that will forever stay with Grimes, who previously starred in the “Fifty Shades of Grey” movie franchise. During an exclusive interview with Looper, Grimes opened up about exactly what impresses him most about working with Costner on the set of “Yellowstone.”
Costner taught Grimes to ‘never phone it in’
As Kayce Dutton on “Yellowstone,” Luke Grimes is a man torn between two worlds — his family legacy with the ranch, and his wife and her Tribal Nation that wants a piece of the Dutton’s coveted land. It’s an ongoing dilemma in the series, which shows Grimes and Kevin Costner sharing many tense and tender scenes. When the cameras stop rolling, though, all Grimes sees is Costner’s unmatched work ethic, which has taught the young actor an important lesson.
“His work ethic is something to look up to — how much he cares,” said Grimes. “For someone who has done so much in his career and has won an Oscar and been around for a while and kind of done everything that you could do in an acting career, he still really shows up to work. He wants to get the most out of every line, out of every scene. That’s something I can really look up to and something to learn from. Never phone it in. You keep working.”