‘Yellowstone’ star Cole Hauser had a cup of joe in Fort Worth as part of ‘dream’ project

Cole Hauser stopped by a Fort Worth Walmart at 6 a.m. Tuesday morning, and it wasn’t to grocery shop.

At 3 a.m., a line the length of the building started to form , full of “Yellowstone” fans who were excited to meet the lead star and get coffee bags autographed.

The 49-year-old actor doesn’t just act. Hauser also co-owns Free Reign Coffee , which is launching a line of products in 1,700 Walmart locations across the country. He showed up in classic Free Reign fashion by “getting up and getting after it.”

“You know when I work on those jobs where we’re up at five in the morning, some actors that I’ve worked with are still stuck in their trailer, and I’m sitting on my horse ready to go,” Hauser told the Star-Telegram. “So I say, ‘let’s get up and get after it,’ And, you know, obviously fuel yourself with a little bit of Free Reign coffee.”

The meet and greet launched the brand’s “ Yellowstone Tour ,” in which a Free Reign Coffee RV will travel to Yellowstone National Park in preparation for the Yellowstone season 5 premiere on Nov. 10. Hauser and other special guests are expected to make a few more visits to select locations.

Who is Yellowstone star Cole Hauser?

Hauser is best known for his lead role in the TV drama series Yellowstone as Rip Wheeler. But he also has quite the resume of movies. You may also recognize him from “Higher Learning,” “School Ties,” “Dazed and Confused,” or “Good Will Hunting.”

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He has a few ties to Cowtown. His son, Ryland, 20, attends Texas Christian University in Fort Worth. Yellowstone often films in the greater Dallas-Fort Worth area . Yellowstone director Taylor Sheridan is also a Texas native and has a ranch in Fort Worth .

As far as his coffee brand, Hauser likes his cup of Joe black. “It’s called the Black American Dirt. That’s it, and it’s a pour over every time,” he says. “I think I’ve had about five cups this morning.”

What to know about Free Reign Coffee

Hauser met the three other co-owners, Karl Pfluger, Aron Marquez, and Paul Anderson, at a fundraising event for military veterans in Odessa.

“We’re all entrepreneurs, and we love coffee, and we shared that passion with Cole and wanted to start a coffee company,” says Pfluger.

Free Reign, a Texas-based company, is focused on giving back to those who serve or really anyone they can help, Pfluger said. The four have all chased their dreams to do so in one way or another.

“Matter of fact, Walmart is who employed me during college to pay my bills. And so I let a cheer see my coffee in there today, which is, you know, full circle,” says Anderson.

“We were all raised in Texas. I was born in Mexico and raised in Texas. I think that’s one of the things that kind of all unite us and Cole together,” says Marquez. “The name too, Free Reign, means basically no boundaries.”

Free Reign said the company tries to help anyone where they need it. Some examples of their work include:

• Bradenton, Florida: Provided coffee and beans for groundbreaking housing community opening for 85 homeless.

• Midland: Provided 2,000 coffee bags for local churches that help kids that don’t have money buy school supplies.

• Mission Agape: Provided coffee bags for children in the public schools who don’t eat lunch, get to take home goodie bags to their family.

• Buy a bag, give a cup: During the whole Yellowstone tour, they will give a free cup of coffee to Tunnels to Towers Foundation.

Free Reign sells whole and ground coffee beans sourced from all over the world, as well as coffee pods. In Walmart, they will launch bags and cups in their dark roast, American Dirt, their signature medium roast, Homestead, and their lighter roast, Prospect .

“This has been kind of a dream come true for our company, and I got to meet some amazing employees, some of the great people at Fort Worth,” said Hauser.