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‘Yellowstone’ Star Josh Lucas Reveals Role He Wanted to Play Before Young John Dutton

Josh Lucas plays a perfect young John Dutton in Yellowstone, but before he landed the part, he had his eyes on another role.

Lucas first appeared in the Paramount hit in Season 1 Episode 3. He has since popped up seven more times, and he’ll likely continue to star in random installments because flashbacks are pivotal to the Dutton’s story.

However, the actor knew that the neo-western would be a hit even before production began. And he originally hoped to play a regularly appearing character. Like millions of cowboys around the world, Josh Lucas wanted to be Rip Wheeler.

“I wanted to be in the pilot,” he told Deadline on Dec. 18. “In fact, I’ve not said this to people, I really wanted to play Rip. But [Taylor Sheridan] clearly wanted Cole Hauser and it was kinda cool for me because I’ve known Cole since we were like 17, 18 years old.”

Josh Lucas Sees a lot of Rip Wheeler in Cole Hauser

Despite feeling a small amount of envy, Josh Lucas admitted that no one could play Rip better than Hauser. And because he knows Hauser personally, he appreciates his performances even more than the audience can.

Lucas first met his Yellowstone co-star when both of them were young, struggling actors. Lucas was living in New York City at the time and Hauser was based out of LA. When Hauser was filming Dazed and Confused in the Big Apple, spent a lot of time with the Sweet Home Alabama star and even crashed on his floor for a few nights.

“I always remember Cole being a striking force,” Lucas continued. “It’s interesting now that he is Rip because he has that same power and energy and danger inside of him, but there’s also a soulfulness. It’s cool now to be on a horse outside of the ranch with him, 30-plus years later.”

When Josh Lucas will ride with Cole Hauser again, however, he doesn’t know. Throughout his time with the series, he hasn’t quite known what the future would bring aside from knowing that young John would come in strong during Season 5.

Now that he’s finished filming that storyline, he’s just waiting to hear from creator Taylor Sheridan. But he “hopes” that he gets the privilege of returning to the set many more times before Yellowstone concludes.

“I love doing the show, but I don’t think anybody knows [what’s ahead]. “I think it’s entirely in Taylor’s head,” he said. “My understanding is that Taylor drives down the road, pulls over, and just writes. I know what Taylor has told me, that he wants to fill in the gaps of who John Dutton is and why he does the things he does. I think it’s flowing out of him. But I also think it’s been in him for a long time. I think this is a singular vision.”