"I think originally he was supposed to die much earlier," the actor tells PEOPLE of Kevin Costner's character John Dutton’s tragic fate in Yellowstone was predetermined, according to star Luke Grimes.

Although both Costner and the Yellowstone team made clear in interviews that he would not be reprising his role as John Dutton in the long-awaited final episodes of the hit series, the character's death in last Sunday's premiere still caught a lot of viewers by surprise.

Paramount Network's Yellowstone started its first episode in nearly two years with a bang last week, with the sudden death of Kevin Costner 's John Dutton.