Yellowstone star Cole Hauser has played ranch foreman Rip Wheeler since the series premiered in 2018. It’s been a career-making role for the actor — a steady TV job after a lengthy film career in supporting roles. Playing Rip has been a blessing in more ways than one, says Hauser. It actually helped him heal after falling off a horse and breaking his back.
Cole Hauser filmed ‘The Last Champion’ before joining the cast of ‘Yellowstone’
The last film role that Hauser had before he got the role of Rip and started shooting Yellowstone was in the wrestling drama The Last Champion. In the film, Hauser played former high school wrestling star and promising Olympian John Wright — a man who is haunted by multiple scandals when he returns to his hometown.
The film was released in 2020, but Hauser actually shot it before he joined Sheridan’s cowboy drama. During filming, there was a mishap on set that caused him to break his back — he fell off a horse.
His lengthy recovery from this devastating injury almost prevented Hauser from taking on the role of Rip. But instead of passing on the project due to his condition, Hauser used the role of Rip to help himself heal.
Playing Rip Wheeler helped him heal after falling off a horse and breaking his back
Per Express, Hauser says that riding a horse again as Rip was the physical therapy he needed to fully recover from his back injury. Being on horseback so soon actually sped up the process of getting back to full strength.
“F**k it, you just gotta get back on the horse and do it,” he said. “My back was so bad I couldn’t move around very well, and so I lost strength in my stomach. What riding ended up doing is strengthening my back and my core.”
Hauser started riding horses when he was a little kid. But, when he took on the role of Rip he had to build up his riding skills. He says he spent hours training with a horse and rope, and the demanding exercise was the perfect way to recover and get in the perfect ranch foreman shape.
How does the ‘Yellowstone’ star stay cowboy-ripped to play Rip?
There’s something special about a country boy who gets ripped doing farm work, and Rip is definitely popular with Yellowstone’s female fans because of it. Per Eat This, Hauser says that “being in horse shape is a lot different than being in gym shape.”
Being on horseback for hours each day is an incredible cardio workout that builds coordination, balance, strength, endurance, and flexibility. It strengthens your abs, thighs, pelvis, and back — which is why it was such a good method of recovery for Hauser.
A day full of horseback riding and roping is an intense full-body workout, and the 47-year-old says that everything hurts. But strong legs and a strong core are the key to steering.
“There are a lot of people who think you’re using the reins to steer your horse, but actually a lot of it happens through the legs and putting the right amount of pressure there with the saddle tongue,” Hauser explained.
Yellowstone Season 5 premieres Sunday, November 13 on the Paramount Network.