Kevin Costner is exploring his love for both Yellowstone and Yosemite National Parks in the new FOX Nation documentary Yellowstone To Yosemite. It's a sequel to his popular documentary Yellowstone: One-Fifty.
In a new clip from FOX Nation, Costner opened up about why he needed to be the one to tell this tale about Yellowstone and Yosemite's history. The actor explained, "Well, I tell you, I — the reason I wanted to be a part of this story, starting even with Yellowstone, was because they're a part of our DNA. They're part of our fabric. And the reality is, we don't even know the struggle, the inspiration, the guts, what was at risk for those who thought to do something differently."
Costner certainly knows a bit about guts and risks, following his instincts on several projects throughout his career. The actor left the popular show Yellowstone to film his western series Horizon. Costner said the series will explore the parks early days and how John Muir and Teddy Roosevelt played pivotal roles in their development.
Kevin Costner Talks Documentary
The actor said, "We know Ferdinand Hayden going into Yellowstone was there to destroy it, to find a path for a railroad, to look for gold. And what he went through is something that we just don't know about as Americans, that this single young man had a bigger — was struck by something."
He continued, "And that's what nature does. And part of the awe that comes from being in Yosemite, part of what Muir understood so clearly, if he could just get Teddy there, if he could — into this spot on El Capitan, see what he saw — that knowing who Teddy was would change the trajectory of the national park system that had fallen into array. Yellowstone was this beautiful idea. But all the mechanics, all the actual fundamentals of having the park system work weren't in place. And it would require a law, because people were still rummaging around these incredible beautiful places, doing things that had to be stopped."
The documentary will explore the "foundation of how they were protected" and Muir and Roosevelt's early roles in the formation of protections. Both ended up protecting the natural wonders of these locations.
Costner explained, "For 30 years, Yellowstone was being kind of ravaged still on a slight level. But Teddy created not only with the national forests and the five national parks. He got this infrastructure that was designed to protect the system. I wanted to be a part of telling their story that has become so important to me as a man, that I can now bring my children to these places, and they will be able to bring their children to these places. I want to do my part, my small part, for what these men risked so long ago."
