Cole Hauser's Early Career Photo Will Make You Do a Double Take

The Paramount+ hit drama Yellowstone features an insane amount of popular actors, including Kevin Costner, Kelly Reilly, Wes Bentley, and of course, Cole Hauser, who plays John Dutton's right-hand man, Rip Wheeler.

Fans have loved this somber character from the very first episode, even calling him the best on Yellowstone. Though most of today's Hauser fans know him thanks to Taylor Sheridan's series, his career began in the early 90s when he starred in a slew of cult films, including School Ties, Dazed and Confused, and Good Will Hunting.

Hauser was a total heartthrob back then, shocking audiences with his stunning good looks and great acting chops. We bet you won't recognize Hauser in the photos from the premiere of Hart's War in 2002, when the young actor really startled the crowd with his supreme physique and curly red hair.

Check out the photos below:

Fans argue that Hauser looks nothing like he did before, wondering what happened to the actor before he agreed to join Yellowstone as Rip Wheeler.

Actually, the transformation came after the star accepted the role, not before.

As you may have noticed in the photos above, Hauser used to have red hair, while he has black hair on the show, and here's why.

'When I first got the role, as you know Kelly's a ginger and I'm ginger as well. So, we looked like we were brother and sister! So, we kind of had to make sure that wouldn't be the case. I've dyed it for other stuff that I've done. They liked that look, and it's kind of a harder look. Your eyes pop a little bit more,' Hauser explained the sudden change in style.

The actor is clearly having the time of his life in Yellowstone, enjoying the unprecedented amount of fan attention, so saying goodbye to his natural hair color must be the least of his worries!