Yellowstone‘s Cole Hauser will star alongside Mel Gibson in a new action-thriller titled Panama, The Hollywood Reporter confirmed earlier this month. The star of the Kevin Costner-led Paramount Network show will headline the film, directed by Mark Neveldine, while Gibson will fill a supporting role.
In December, the film will begin shooting in Puerto Rico and follows a decorated ex-marine, played by Hauser, who is sent undercover by his former commander, played by Gibson, to execute a “high-value deal with untrustworthy adversaries.” Hauser and Gibson previously worked together on the 2004 thriller Paparazzi, in which Hauser had a starring role and Gibson produced via his Icon Productions. After the news broke of their new film on Oct. 15, Hauser wrote on Instagram he was “looking forward to working with [Gibson] again!”
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Panama will be headed by Yale Productions, with Jordan Beckerman and Jordan Yale Levine producing along with Michelle Chydzik Sowa and Michelle Reihel. William R. Barber, Richard Switzer, Ian Niles and Anne Clements are executive producers.
Hauser currently plays Rip Wheeler on Yellowstone, which wrapped up its third season in August and renewed for a fourth. Ending on a cliffhanger with the fates of Beth (Kelly Reilly), John (Kevin Costner), and Kayce (Luke Grimes) hanging in the balance, Hauser told Esquire that crafting a relationship with Reilly’s Beth over the years has been “a pleasure.”
“We have so much to do together. Being able to act them with her is an honor. [Regarding Rip and Beth], absolutely. I think that world is starting to open up. That’s absolutely something that could happen,” he continued. “You’re going to see how it shakes out at the end, but… we’ll see where Taylor takes us. I don’t sit with him and say, ‘Hey, by year seven, are we here or there?’ That relationship, it could go many different ways, but I think it could go in the way of us being together.” Asked about Rip’s “best case end,” Hauser said he sees his character with Beth “in a shack.” He continued, “It would be a real success story for both of them. Not just for Rip, because they’ll have each other.”
Bringing attention to the modern American west has been an interesting journey as well. “It’s survived 130 years already. It’s one of those things that’s like, oh, this is going away,” the actor continued. “It’s not going to be like this anymore, but it is. All the things happening in 1879 are still happening to this day. It would have to be a long tragedy. I think this is a great depiction of ranchers, water rights, American Indians, casino business. It’s the same thing, with a newer spin on it.”
