Cole Hauser has candidly discussed the difficulties of filming Dutton Ranch‘s first season without Yellowstone creator Taylor Sheridan closely involved, revealing that the cast leaned heavily on familiar faces to get through an unusually turbulent production.
Speaking to Film Inside NYC in an interview shared on Instagram, Hauser, who reprises his role as Rip Wheeler in the Yellowstone spinoff, didn’t shy away from the reality behind the scenes.
“There were challenges, you know?” he said.
“Not having Taylor there, for us to really kind of be able to work with these new writers, these new directors, these people, everything had changed.”
Sheridan, who created Yellowstone and wrote and directed much of the original series, stepped back to an executive producer role on Dutton Ranch, leaving the show’s day-to-day creative direction to director Christina Alexandra Voros and a new writers’ room.
Hauser said the closest thing to stability on set came from working alongside fellow Yellowstone veterans.
“The only kind of normality that we had whatsoever,” he explained, came from co-stars Kelly Reilly, who plays Beth Dutton, and Finn Little, who plays Carter Green, along with Voros.
Despite the upheaval, Hauser said he takes pride in what the cast and new creative team ultimately delivered.
“I enjoy a challenge. It certainly was a challenge. We worked our asses off this year,” he said.
“It was about putting my head down and working my ass off with what I had around me… I’m proud of what we accomplished, and I look forward to doing it again.”
The turbulence was not only Sheridan’s decreased involvement.
Original Dutton Ranch showrunner Chad Feehan departed after completing the first season amid reported difficulties managing the show’s high-profile cast, with sources telling Deadline that while Feehan delivered strong scripts, showrunning a cast full of established names proved a separate challenge.
Benjamin Cavell, known for his work on SEAL Team, has since been brought on as showrunner for the already-greenlit second season.
Despite the behind-the-scenes disruption, Dutton Ranch has performed strongly since its May premiere, posting the most successful debut of any original Paramount+ series since 1923, the streamer’s earlier Yellowstone spinoff.
