'Yellowstone' Creator Files Lawsuit Against Hit Show's Star Actor

Drama is brewing on the set of the Paramount Network hit “Yellowstone ” following a lawsuit from the show’s co-creator against one of its top stars.

Bosque Ranch, a company owned by showrunner Taylor Sheridan, has filed a trademark infringement lawsuit against a coffee company recently launched by actor Cole Hauser, who plays cowboy Rip Wheeler on the Western series.

The lawsuit filed late last month in Texas, where both companies are based, accuses Free Rein Coffee of promoting its products with a logo and “cowboy” theme that’s nearly identical to Bosque Ranch’s own theme, logo and coffee products.

Bosque Ranch publicly launched a coffee line in June that uses a trademarked B and R logo and was promoted as reflecting the “cowboy way of life,” according to the lawsuit, which alleged trademark infringement, dilution and unfair competition.

Free Rein’s coffee, which launched in October, uses a similarly stacked F and R as its logo and was promoted as “born from the cowboy tradition,” the suit states. Both logos are depicted below for comparison.

The Bosque Ranch brand “is famous and distinctive” in the state of Texas, the lawsuit argues. The suit includes images of the Bosque Ranch brand in scenes of “Yellowstone,” which is expected  to air the second half of its fifth and final season late next year. 

Hauser’s brand “is confusingly similar to the BR Brand used by Bosque Ranch” and is “likely to cause confusion or to cause mistake or to deceive,” the complaint argues.

Bosque Ranch’s lawsuit demands a jury trial and argues that it’s entitled to all of Free Rein Coffee’s profits, damage compensation, prejudgement interest and legal fee coverage.

Bosque Ranch’s attorneys declined comment to HuffPost. Representatives for Free Rein did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s requests for comment Thursday.