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Kevin Costner

6 facts you didn’t know about Kevin Costner

We all know Kevin Costner - or do we? As the Hollywood legend narrates a new Sky HISTORY series, here are some obscure but fascinating facts about him.

Image: Kevin Costner's The West

Don’t we all have our own favourite Kevin Costner film? The much-loved American actor rose to prominence in the late 1980s with starring roles in hits like The Untouchables (1987) and Field of Dreams (1989).

In the 1990s, he cemented his A-list status with turns in The Bodyguard (alongside the late Whitney Houston) and Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. We at Sky HISTORY were excited to learn he also has a big passion for American history.

In the new Sky HISTORY docuseries Kevin Costner’s The West, he is ready to enthrall audiences once more. This time, he’s narrating unjustly overlooked tales of the American West. Before watching, though, why not catch up on the following little-known things about Costner himself?

1. He got career advice from Richard Burton

The young Kevin Costner didn’t always look destined to become an actor. In his early twenties, he was still trying to figure out whether to give it a proper go.

By chance, it wasn’t long before he found himself sharing a plane with legendary thespian Richard Burton. The canny Costner sought out the Cleopatra star and asked for his advice.

As it turned out, Burton did encourage Costner to take up acting as a career. Burton passed away only a few years later in 1984, before Costner hit the big time.

2. He became a member of the Lakota Sioux

Easily one of Costner’s best-known projects — even more than three decades after its original release — is the 1990 historical drama Dances With Wolves. Set during the American Civil War, it follows Union army officer John J Dunbar as he assimilates himself into a Lakota Sioux community.

Not only did Costner star in the film as Dunbar, he took the directorial reins. Many Native Americans praised his positive portrayal of Sioux culture. In fact, shortly after the film’s release, Costner was adopted into the Sioux tribe.

At the 63rd Academy Awards, Costner also personally won two Oscars — for Best Picture and Best Director.

3. He loves Westerns

Dances With Wolves is a Western, but it’s certainly not the only one he’s been involved with. He’s actually made quite a few contributions to the genre — including 1994’s Wyatt Earp and his 2020 Horizon films, which he personally funded.

Costner’s longstanding attachment to Westerns is no accident, either. Costner has openly enthused about how watching the 1962 classic How The West Was Won

as a child sparked his interest in Westerns.

It all made Costner the obvious choice to narrate new Sky HISTORY series The West, which dives into the actual history of the American West. You’ve seen the Hollywood-ified version — now it’s time to see what originally inspired the birth of a whole cinematic genre.

4. He nearly made a Bodyguard sequel with Diana, Princess of Wales

Costner famously played the English folk hero Robin Hood, but also claims to have had numerous real-life encounters with British royals.

In a 2024 episode of The Howard Stern Show, Costner said that Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, brought him into contact with Diana. This was reportedly around 1996, when Costner wanted her to join him in a sequel to his 1992 hit film The Bodyguard.

According to Costner, Diana’s shock death in a car crash on 31st August 1997 led him to scrap the whole project. Costner further told Stern that he later met Diana’s son Prince William, remembering their chat as 'the sweetest, gentlest thing'.


5. He also has a music career

Like fellow Sky HISTORY narrator David Duchovny, Costner has a hand in both acting and music. He founded his country rock band Kevin Costner & Modern West in the noughties.

Since then, the group has released five studio albums. The latest is 2020’s Tales from Yellowstone, a soundtrack to the Costner-starring neo-Western drama series Yellowstone (2018-2024).

6. Diane Lane is a frequent on-screen wife

Many comic book fans will remember Costner and Diane Lane playing Superman’s adoptive parents, Jonathan and Martha Kent, in 2013’s Man of Steel.

Both actors reprised these roles in 2016’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice as well as Zack Snyder’s Justice League in 2021. However, Costner and Lane have even played a married couple outside the DC Extended Universe…

That’s because they portrayed George and Margaret Blackledge in the 2020 thriller Let Him Go. Upon its release, Lane recalled to Sky News: 'I knew we were going to have a good time because of our chemistry.'


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