Kevin Costner on ‘Yellowstone,’ ‘Law & Order,’ ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ & More

One of the most shocking TV exits in recent memory came in 2024 when Kevin Costner confirmed that he was not returning for the second half of Yellowstone Season 5. A reported scheduling dispute between him and series creator Taylor Sheridan is said to be the cause of his exit. Sheridan is Yellowstone‘s only writer, and Costner cited delayed scripts as a scheduling issue on multiple occasions.

No matter the reason for his departure, John Dutton is the center of Yellowstone, and many people tuned in in the first place specifically because the two-time Oscar winner was doing TV. While Costner’s exit made the biggest splash, he’s far from the only surprising series exit from 2024.

Here, we’ve compiled a list of the major series exits that took place this year, many of them being longtime main characters of their respective shows. Some were written out with heartbreaking deaths, but the fact that they were written out at all makes their endings more shocking.

Look back on this year in TV in the major TV exits gallery below. Warning: There are major spoilers ahead for each of these respective shows. Don’t read on if you don’t want to know how each of these characters were written out of their respective shows.