Kevin Costner played the role of a “bodyguard” to Whitney Houston both on-screen and off-screen. In a conversation with Dax Shepard and podcast host Monica Padman on the June 3 episode of Armchair Expert, the 69-year-old Yellowstone star reflected on his illustrious career and briefly discussed his experience working with the iconic singer on the set of The Bodyguard.
Early in the episode, Shepard, 49, expressed his curiosity about the late actress and their relationship during the filming of the 1992 blockbuster. Costner responded with affection, recalling his time with his late friend.
He mentioned that director Mick Jackson was initially uneasy about casting Houston, but Costner himself had chosen her for the role, stating, “I loved her. It wasn’t some big mystery. So I knew she was the one.”
Costner explained that because he was producing the film and had asked Houston not to bring an entourage, there was a moment when she placed her trust in him. He recalled a specific instance where, as he looked at her, he noticed that the director seemed intimidated by her.
“I started to guide her,” Costner said. “I wasn’t trying to overstep my director, but I had made a promise to her, not to him.”
Costner went on to describe how he honored his commitment to Houston and her manager, Clive Davis.
He acknowledged that the film initially didn’t test well but reassured Houston that it would ultimately succeed. “She’s always gonna love me, in the song. I was always going to keep my promise to her.”
As the discussion continued, Shepard expressed his admiration for Houston’s “once in a generation” talent.
Costner shared that when Houston arrived on set, he told her, “You can’t have an entourage, but I’m going to take care of you if there’s someone important to you”—that person turned out to be Robyn Crawford. “I said, ‘Let’s have Robyn with you… I don’t have an entourage, so you’re not going to have one.’ And that’s how we started.”
Shepard noted how Costner must have made Houston feel safe, adding, “That’s what the entourage is about; there’s a lot of fear.”
Costner responded, “I don’t know what it was, but we had a moment, and I realized that the world had a higher perception of us, so I embraced it. I was her imaginary bodyguard.”
“It’s so sweet. It works on so many levels,” Shepard replied. “I think there were probably real things happening that contributed to what we saw on screen. You were her bodyguard—it’s not just rhetorical.”
“Yeah, psychologically,” concluded Padman, 36.
