A forgotten revenge thriller from 2004 featured Cole Hauser, known for his role in Yellowstone, as the lead actor, sharing the screen with stars like Matthew McConaughey and Chris Rock. Cole Hauser has had a long and impressive career, gaining attention in films like Dazed and Confused and Good Will Hunting.
His big break came in 2000 with the unexpected success of Pitch Black, where he starred alongside Vin Diesel. Since then, Hauser has kept busy with various roles, but he is best known for playing Rip Wheeler in Yellowstone.
Rip is the loyal right-hand man of John Dutton, played by Kevin Costner, in the modern Western saga Yellowstone. He’s ready to do whatever it takes to protect his adopted family. With Costner’s recent departure from the series, Hauser’s role is expected to become even more significant in the show’s future.
Hauser also continues to take on film projects, such as the 2022 movie The Minute You Wake Up Dead, where he stars alongside Morgan Freeman.
Cole Hauser’s Paparazzi Features A Host Of Major Cameos
This 2004 thriller was Cole Hauser’s shot at leading man status
After the success of Pitch Black, studios recognized Cole Hauser’s potential as a movie star. He quickly landed major roles in blockbuster films like the war drama Tears of the Sun alongside Bruce Willis and played the lead villain, Carter Verone, in 2 Fast 2 Furious.
His first real test as a leading man came in 2004 with Paparazzi, which features a clever twist: a popular young actor is pursued for stardom while being harassed by a ruthless group of tabloid photographers.
One fun aspect of *Paparazzi* is the number of cameos it features in its short runtime. Stars like Chris Rock, Vince Vaughn, Matthew McConaughey, and even producer Mel Gibson make surprise appearances.
These cameos often occur during scenes where Hauser’s character, Bo, is attending glamorous premieres or working on his latest action film, *Adrenaline Force 2*, which is a clear parody of Gibson’s *Lethal Weapon* movies.
The cameos in Paparazzi provide a fun distraction from a storyline that often struggles to engage. Despite its flaws, the film boasts a solid supporting cast, including the dependable Dennis Farina as the detective looking into Bo’s case and Tom Sizemore as the unpleasant main paparazzo, Rex Harper.
The cast works hard to bring depth to their thinly written roles. While Hauser is a likable lead, the film doesn’t convincingly portray Bo’s transformation from a soft-spoken actor to a calculating vigilante.
Hauser’s Paparazzi Character Is The Total Opposite Of Yellowstone’s Rip
Yellowstone’s Rip wreaks bloody vengeance on a weekly basis
Mel Gibson is credited with coming up with the idea for Paparazzi, suggesting that a celebrity seeking revenge on sleazy tabloid journalists would make for an engaging revenge story. The film aims to be a cathartic tale of vengeance that critiques the state of the media, but it gets stuck within a bland PG-13 thriller framework.
It needed to delve deeper into darker themes because, despite scenes like a man being beaten to death with a baseball bat (shown offscreen), Paparazzi consistently portrays Bo as a nice guy who has been pushed too far.
It’s quite striking to compare Cole Hauser’s character in Paparazzi with Rip from Yellowstone, especially since the latter suits him much better. Both Bo and Rip hail from Montana and share a fierce loyalty to their families, but that’s where the similarities end.
Bo is bright-eyed and naive about his Hollywood journey, and it’s only after the paparazzi cause an accident that leaves his son in a coma that he chooses to seek revenge.
In contrast, Rip is world-weary and no-nonsense, accustomed to handling the messy affairs of the Dutton clan on a regular basis. If the paparazzi from Paparazzi had come to the ranch, Bo would probably have found himself taking them to Yellowstone’s notorious “Train Station” by the end of the episode.
Why Paparazzi Was So Badly Received
Cole Hauser deserved a better leading vehicle
There’s a version of Paparazzi that could have been a guilty pleasure, but the film’s execution falls short. Although it markets itself as an action thriller, it lacks both action and thrills, and its commentary is overly obvious.
The car accident that leaves Bo’s young son in a coma is deliberately reminiscent of the death of Princess Diana, but the film offers no insightful commentary on issues like press freedom or celebrities’ rights to privacy.
Instead, the movie comes off as oddly pedestrian, lacking in style, wit, or any deeper message beyond “the paparazzi are terrible and should treat celebrities better.” It also fails to showcase Cole Hauser’s star potential, as it gives him a two-dimensional hero role without any exciting action scenes.
Paparazzi was a critical and box office failure, earning a dismal 18% on Rotten Tomatoes and grossing only $16 million against a reported production budget of $20 million (according to The Numbers).
Naturally, a movie about a wealthy and famous celebrity hunting down and killing members of the press wasn’t likely to receive the warmest reviews. Paparazzi had the potential to be much more controversial and provocative, but instead, it ended up being the worst thing it could be: dull.
Cole Hauser Found His Perfect Role With Yellowstone
Paparazzi was a career blip for Cole Hauser that didn’t last long
After the failure of Paparazzi, Cole Hauser took on another leading role in the 2005 horror adventure The Cave. Unfortunately, this film also wasted a promising concept, especially since the rival movie The Descent executed a similar premise much better.
In the following years, Hauser kept busy, appearing in various films like The Break-Up and Olympus Has Fallen, as well as leading the gritty cop drama Rogue.
It wasn’t until he was cast as Rip in Yellowstone that he truly found his ideal role, evolving from a supporting character to a lead over multiple seasons. Ironically, if he had become a major movie star, he likely wouldn’t have been offered the role of Rip in the first place.
Hauser feels much more at home in the gritty world of the Taylor Sheridan-created series compared to Paparazzi, which is one reason why he stands out in the show.
With Costner’s departure, it appears Rip will become even more crucial to the franchise. Although there were reports that the upcoming second part of Yellowstone Season 5 would be the end, negotiations are reportedly in progress for a sixth season.
Hauser undoubtedly learned valuable lessons from Paparazzi that he carried into his future roles, including Yellowstone. In a 2021 interview with Cowboys & Indians, Hauser reflected on the 2004 thriller, mentioning that while he never had a particularly negative experience with tabloid photographers, he recalled an incident shortly after the film’s release.
While shopping, he encountered a paparazzo taking pictures of him and his young son. However, the photographer became frightened and ran away after Hauser reportedly gave him “… the Bo Laramie look.”
