‘Yellowstone’ lawsuit: Why is Taylor Sheridan suing Cole Hauser?

Unless you have been napping since the first half of Yellowstone season 5 wrapped up, you should be well aware that the fictional turmoils have transcended the boundaries of the ill-fated ranch and the Dutton family to firmly establish its roots in the real world.

While Taylor Sheridan is busy expanding the world of the Duttons, his original stepping stone towards that widespread universe isn’t coming to an end with an amicable conclusion. First Sheridan didn’t shy away from revealing how “disappointed” he was by Kevin Costner’s decision to leave the show as it “truncates” his character, John Dutton’s arc. Then Costner claimed in September 2023 that he is still owed $12 million for the second half of season 5 and he may sue over his delayed salary.

It definitely doesn’t make matters easy that, unlike other productions that resumed filming after the writers’ strike and the SAG-AFTRA strike ended, Yellowstone is yet to end its hiatus while Sheridan is too busy, stretched between the countless shows he keeps creating for Paramount Network.

And if this hornet’s nest of chaos wasn’t already bypassing its limits, Sheridan is now suing Yellowstone star Cole Hauser over a logo.

What is happening between Taylor Sheridan and Cole Hauser?

The lawsuit against Hauser’s coffee company, Free Rein, was filed by Sheridan’s Bosque Ranch, an equine facility that also poses as the Paramount drama’s filming location, on Nov. 21, 2023. But why is he suing Hauser, who plays the much-loved cowboy Rip Wheeler in the series? Well, the feud is over coffee, to be specific the logo for said coffee.

As per the suit, the ranch has accused Hauser’s Free Rein of attempting to copy its logo, which amounts to “trademark infringement, unfair competition, and false advertising” (via NBC news) So, Sheridan’s ranch’s logo is the letters B and R intertwined with each other — a format that the recently launched Free Rein Coffee Company (also based in Texas like the ranch) has been accused of duplicating as its F and R are also allegedly intertwined similarly.

In the lawsuit, Hauser’s coffee company, which was launched just four months after Bosque Ranch’s line of coffee entered the market, has been called out for deliberately designing almost identical logos to “mistake or to deceive as to the affiliation, connection, or association” with Sheridan’s ranch.

Neither party has publicly addressed the issue, though Hauser did promote Free Rein on his Instagram page a day after the suit against the company was filed.