"Needed to direct this": Kevin Costner on directing 'Horizon: An American Saga'

Costner, who directed, co-wrote and starred in his 'Horizon' saga, stepped behind the camera for the first time since 2003's 'Open Range.'

Despite winning an Oscar for best director in 1991, Kevin Costner's Horizon: An American Saga -- Chapter 1 is his fourth film as a filmmaker and his first in more than 20 years.

Costner received an Academy Award for his directorial debut, Dances With Wolves, which he followed with 1997's The Postman and 2003's Open Range; since then, he has primarily focused on acting and producing films, but he felt he wanted to return to the director's chair for Horizon.

"Sometimes you wonder if you can still ride the bike, but what I knew was I believed so much in my story that I really was the one that needed to direct this," said Costner. "I didn't want to come away not bringing everything home that I thought the movie had a chance to deliver," he added.

He added, "There are people that are more talented than myself; I'm sure that (there are) directors (who) really understand the camera, but I believe in stories, and I believe so much in it that for me, I think that comes shining through my movies. I don't really blow anybody away with my technical understanding of things; I just film the moments and try to put my actors in spots where they can succeed, and I try to shoot them against backgrounds that are undeniable."

Horizon is a planned four-part film series, with part two slated to be released in August and parts three and four still in production. Costner leads an ensemble cast in a narrative about the growth and colonisation of the American West in the 15 years preceding and following the Civil War.

When asked why he and Western genre work so well together, particularly after his successful run on Yellowstone, the star mused, "Maybe I believe in the behaviour that happened a million times there and to find an authentic spin on it each time, not just rely on a cliche but dig down a little deeper and put circumstance in front of the action."

Sienna Miller, Sam Worthington, Luke Wilson, Jenna Malone, Michael Rooker, and Jamie Campbell Bower all co-star in the project and weighed in on what Costner was like as a director, with Worthington saying, "He's got a wealth of cinematic knowledge, he's worked with some of the greats, and I just tried to listen and take in everything he said and try to learn a little from him."

Wilson, noting the role was "different than anything I'd ever done," added, "Growing up, I'd seen him as this Clint Eastwood, Steve McQueen type of guy, and then to be directed by him, I found out just how thoughtful and sensitive he is about what you're trying to do and what he'd like for you to do."

Costner has famously been developing the project for years, putting up 38 million dollars of his own money to make the films when no studio would sign on and finance. Producer Tanner Beard shared about the four-film saga that "there's nothing like this, especially not exclusive to theatres," adding that Costner is "probably the bravest person in Hollywood, without question." Horizon: An American Saga -- Chapter 1 hits theatres on Friday, as per The Hollywood Reporter. (ANI)