FORT WORTH, Texas — "Yellowstone" creator Taylor Sheridan is suing one of his star's new company over a coffee trademark dispute, according to court documents.
Sheridan's Bosque Ranch brand is suing Cole Hauser's Free Rein Coffee Company, alleging trademark infringement and unfair competition.
Hauser is star on the wildly popular Western drama "Yellowstone," playing the role of ranch foreman Rip Wheeler, who is also married to the character Beth Dutton on the show. Hauser this year launched Free Rein, a Western-inspired brand that "embodied the dreamer’s mindset and callused hands of those cowboys [Hauser] admired," their website said.
The Bosque Ranch lawsuit, which was filed in federal court in Fort Worth on Nov. 21, alleges that Free Rein's lawsuit is too similar to Bosque Ranch's logo.
The Bosque Ranch logo is a brand featuring a "B" overlaid on an "R." Bosque Ranch also has a coffee brand, which it launched in June in partnership with Community Coffee Company. The lawsuit alleges that Free Rein was launched three months after the Bosque Ranch coffee brand and that Free Rein's logo is "like the ubiquitous Bosque Ranch trademark" that features "two overlapping letters -- this time F and R," the lawsuit said.
The lawsuit alleges that Hauser and Free Rein did not have permission to use "a mark confusingly similar to the BR brand for virtually identical goods."
The lawsuit is calling for a permanent injunction against Free Rein using an alleged similar brand to Bosque Ranch. The lawsuit also wants "compensatory damages," including any profits made by Free Rein, the documents said.
WFAA reached out to Free Rein for a request for comment, but the company did not immediately respond.
Hauser, who lives in Florida, is among the most popular cast members on "Yellowstone," which is set to air its final season in November 2024.
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