Cole Hauser's Rip Wheeler and Kelly Reilly's Beth Dutton may not disappear from the small screen after “Yellowstone” concludes its fifth and final season.
In a new interview with Country Living, Hauser explained that his top priority is finishing the second installment of the fifth season of Taylor Sheridan's hit series.
“I'm so focused on finishing yellow stone “The way it needs to be ended right now…well, just the show itself,” Hauser told the outlet. “We'll see where that goes.”
Cole Hauser and Kelly Reilly play Rip Wheeler and Beth Dutton in “Yellowstone.” (Supreme)
Hauser shared that Sheridan has some ideas for continuing Rip and Beth's love story.
'YELLOWSTONE' ENDS AFTER THE SECOND HALF OF THE FIFTH SEASON AMID THE KEVIN COSTNER DRAMA
“But I know there are some things on the horizon when it comes to Taylor's ideas for Kelly Reilly and I, and some of the rest of the cast,” Cole said. “I'm excited to see where she goes creatively with it. But right now, it's just: Let's finish strong; let's do the best we can.”
Over the past year, there have been rumors about spin-off series. And Paramount Media Networks chairman and CEO Chris McCarthy confirmed to the Hollywood Reporter in April 2023 that Matthew McConaughey will star in the next installment of the “Yellowstone” universe. It was announced that this series will be called “2024.”
“Yellowstone” star Cole Hauser teased that his character could return in a spin-off series. (Getty Images)
Kelly Reilly plays John Dutton's (Kevin Costner) daughter in “Yellowstone.” (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for Paramount Network)
At that time, the network also announced that a new prequel series, “1944,” would also be made.
Sheridan's “Yellowstone” empire already includes the prequels “1883” and “1923,” as well as the spin-off “Bass Reeves.”
In an interview with Radio Times in March, Reilly advised “Yellowstone” fans not to pay attention to everything they read, while also giving a subtle hint that Beth Dutton's story is not over.
Kevin Costner is the star of “Yellowstone” and leads the Dutton family as John Dutton. (Supreme Network)
“I only care about finishing [the main show] “With all the care, passion and love I can put into it,” he told the outlet. “That's what matters to me.” I'm preparing for it now [and] That's what matters most to me about my tunnel vision. And what happens beyond that? There are arguments, you know? Don't believe everything you read. It's just nonsense. But we're going to, you know, wait and see. I don't have an answer right now. But we'll see.”
Representatives for Hauser, Reilly and Paramount+ did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's requests for comment.
“Yellowstone” has yet to begin production on the second installment of the fifth series and no release date has been set.
Taylor Sheridan wrote and appears in “Yellowstone.” (Getty Images)
Hauser's character on the hit series quickly became a fan favorite, which surprised the star. In an interview with PeopleCole explained that the popularity had “surprised the s— of Janelle Ash Taylor Sheridan and I, at first.”
What scared Hauser the most about his character was that he interacted with “normal people.”
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“And I think that's the scariest part,” she said, adding that “he's that kind of animal.”
In 2022, Hauser spoke to Fox News Digital about the first moment he realized Rip Wheeler was a heartthrob.
Hauser was “surprised” to learn that “Yellowstone” fans consider him a heartthrob. (Photo by Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images)
“When I realized?” the actor chuckled to Fox News Digital. “I think when this old lady grabbed my ass at Whole Foods.”
“This was about four years ago,” he shared. “She says, 'Are you Rip?' And she pissed me off! I was like, 'Holy shit, what are you doing? You're my mom's age.' She's like, 'I don't give a damn.' I was like, 'Okay, fair play.'”
“I told my mother. She told me: 'Get used to it, son,'” the 49-year-old then added.
The cast of the second season of “Yellowstone.” (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for Paramount Network)
Hauser noted that there's a reason fans can't get enough of “Yellowstone,” and insisted it has nothing to do with him making hearts race.
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“Well, first of all, it's not the western, it's the writing of Taylor Sheridan,” he explained of the filmmaker. “That starts with him and the stories he tells, the characters he developed, the actors he hired, the crew. In my opinion, [he’s] “He is one of the great American writers and tells stories that he knows well and that interest him.”
The cast has not begun filming the second installment of the fifth season of “Yellowstone.” (Supreme Network)
And the story hits close to home for the actor. Hauser grew up in Santa Barbara, California, and on a ranch in Oregon, where he spent much of his childhood riding horses and “walking with cows,” he told People in 2020 for his Sexiest Man photo shoot. He noted that he feels completely at ease in the show's Montana setting.
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“'Yellowstone' is a kind of extension of [Sheridan’s] love and passion for the West, and that's who I am,” Hauser said. “I think there is [are] Wonderful stories to tell even in the modern setting of 'Yellowstone'.”
