Clearly, John is not physically well. He has pushed himself too far too many times.

If Costner had other reasons for leaving early, i.e. his devotion to his current series of films he considers his epic, then I can understand why it would be difficult, if not impossible, to get him to come back to act out John's demise.

I would think Costner's absence would leave a huge hole in the narrative. Let's see if Sheridan is as good a writer as many think him to be. It will be an excellent test.

Too bad, Kevin's first film of the series bombed. It would have been fun to see a successful trilogy(?).

I am more interested in the 1923 series. It is hard to dismiss Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren. And the two young couples were very compelling, each in their own way.