Kevin Costner has faced multiple claims of being difficult to work with, and the clash with Wes Bentley on the soundstage in Utah may have been a tipping point in his Yellowstone career. Feuds, walkouts, and lawsuits have often marked his remarkable career with infamous incidents. However, his agent, Rick Nicita, had a different take on this.
Rick Nicita says Kevin Costner wasn’t a difficult person to work with
Kevin Costner has had many well-known clashes with some of the industry’s biggest names, including Clint Eastwood and Kurt Russell. Most of these disputes were over creative differences. Even his longtime friends and collaborators, such as Jim Wilson, had intense disagreements with him. The one with Wilson even reached the courtroom.
However, his longtime agent, Rick Nicita, offered a different perspective on Costner being “difficult.” Nicita, who represented Costner from 2002 until his retirement in 2008, spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about the actor.
“The word difficult gets used a lot,” he explained. “It can mean someone who won’t come out of their trailer, someone who doesn’t know their lines, or someone who is rude. That’s not Kevin. He wanted what he wanted and knew what he wanted, and if he didn’t get it … well, he was never a great compromiser. It’s a firm belief in himself and a confidence that, to some, can play as arrogance.”
Kevin Costner is more reserved than many. He relies on a small circle of people. Businessman Rod Lake, who often engages in movie production, works closely with him, while Howard Kaplan, a former Price Waterhouse accountant, currently serves as his consigliere. After Nicita retired from CAA in 2008, Costner signed with WME, which now represents him.
Nicita has stayed in touch over the years. “Nothing that’s happened surprises me because Kevin firmly believes in himself,” he added. “He thinks he can will things into happening because he could, and he did. I don’t think that’s changed. What happened is the circumstances no longer allow for that. I’ve never known him to play the angles; it’s all fast balls down the middle. It’s just that the strike zone has gotten smaller. But I would never write him off.”
So, it seems that, like many stars of his stature, Kevin Costner has both admirable and challenging sides. Despite his reported issues, Costner remains one of the biggest stars in the industry today.
Originally reported by Sourav Chakraborty on ComingSoon.
