After every recent episode of Yellowstone, a teaser video has referred to this Sunday’s (Dec. 15) episode as the “season finale,” not the “series finale.”

It’s driving fans crazy!

If you’re prone to Yellowstone conspiracy theories like my Dutton Rules podcast co-host Adison Haager and I are, you’ve wondered if this means another season is on the horizon.

There was, after all, that rumor about Kelly Reilly and Cole Hauser (Beth Dutton and Rip) leading a Season 6, and I think she even said she’d consider it.

Confirming that rumor would be to spoil how Season 5 ends, however. A showdown between Beth and Jamie is coming, and she can’t lead a new season from heaven or hell.

• Yellowstone‘s Season 5 finale airs on Paramount Network this Sunday at 8PM ET.
• The major plot lines fans expect to wrap up are: Who gets the Dutton family ranch and what will become of Beth and Jamie’s feud.
• Filming for a new spinoff called Madison is expected to begin in 2025.

Related: Yellowstone Reaction: I’m Gonna Defend Taylor Sheridan

During her weekly check-ins with the Hollywood Reporter, executive producer Christina Voros has dodged that question and any others that even smell like they could spoil what’s to come.

In November she revealed something that not only explains the “season finale” issue, but why country music’s favorite character has been missing.

In short, everyone involved in production has participated in a magic show meant to ensure loose-lipped extras don’t know what happens. Alternate dialogue, scenes without scripts and action away from what was truly meant for TVs were all part of an attempt to make sure nobody knew how this thing ends.

A great example was last week’s rodeo auction, where everyone paused for a moment of silence to tribute John Dutton and Colby Mayfield. Hundreds of extras appeared to be on hand for it. How can you trust each of them to not blab when you’re only paying $100 a day?

Will Lainey Wilson’s Abby Return to Yellowstone?

In August, news of an Abby concert scene filmed in Fort Worth came via the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. This could have plugged in to any of the Texas scenes from the first three or four episodes of Season 5, Part 2, but now everyone is back home in Montana and it’s hard to imagine such a light and creative moment being shoehorned into a finale that promises to be very heavy.

Was this just another diversion tactic?

I think labeling Sunday’s Yellowstone finale as the “season” finale instead of the “series” finale is another diversion tactic. Putting a firm period on whatever happens is a spoiler of sorts. They’d be saying that this show can’t go on any longer, and that would mean a key character like Beth, Rip or Kayce dies — which feels very possible if you read Voros’ full interview with THR.

A full 80 percent of Taste of Country YouTube viewers think Jamie will be the one who dies. In a twisted way, that would be a happy ending, but Voros also reminds us that Yellowstone has never been about happy endings.

Come back on Thursday for our weekly episode preview, during which I’ll share a second plausible way this show could end.

It’s not dishonest to say it’s the final episode of the season … it’s just an incomplete truth if the show isn’t meant to continue.

It’s a diversion.