Hulk Hogan built a career on larger than life showdowns, and it turns out the drama did not stop when the arena lights went down. Months after the wrestling icon’s death, his estate is staring down a $10 million claim tied to a beer brand that was supposed to toast his legacy, not drag it back into court. At the center of the fight is a simple but explosive allegation, that the late wrestler’s “Real American” beer concept was lifted from a partner who says they did the early heavy lifting and were cut out of the payoff.
The dispute blends nostalgia, celebrity branding, and some very real legal risk for the people now in charge of Hogan’s money. It also shows how messy things can get when a famous name, a hot consumer product, and a fast moving startup culture collide, especially once the star behind it all is no longer around to answer questions.
The $10 Million Shot Across Hulk Hogan’s Estate
The new claim lands squarely on the shoulders of the people handling Hulk Hogan’s finances after his death, accusing them of profiting from a beer company that someone else says was theirs first. According to a demand described in court filings, the estate is being pressed for $10 million in damages over allegations that the late wrestler’s beer company was effectively stolen from a business partner who had already developed the concept and pitched it as a full scale brand. The filing, framed as a “Million Demand Over Claims Late Wrestler Beer Company Was Stolen,” argues that Hogan’s side moved ahead with the project anyway, leaving the original collaborator out of the ownership and the upside.
The dispute is laid out in a complaint that says the estate “Hit With” a multimillion dollar demand tied to the “Real American” beer line, which the claimant insists was built on their groundwork rather than a fresh idea from Hogan’s camp. The demand letter, described in an Exclusive report, claims that the beer company was built using plans and branding that had already been developed in partnership with Hogan, then pushed forward without honoring that relationship. A second reference to the same dispute, also framed as an Exclusive account “By Ryan Naumann,” underscores that the estate is being treated as the deep pocket responsible for sorting out what, exactly, Hogan promised while he was alive.
How “Real American” Beer Was Supposed To Work
Before it turned into a legal headache, the beer project was pitched as a classic celebrity brand play, pairing Hogan’s throwback wrestling persona with a nostalgic lager aimed at fans who grew up watching him on television. The concept leaned heavily on his “Real American” image, the same red, white, and yellow vibe that once sold T shirts and action figures, now repackaged as a beer line meant to stand out in a crowded craft market. The branding was not subtle, it was designed to feel like a liquid version of his entrance music, with the wrestler’s name and likeness front and center on cans and marketing materials.
Behind the scenes, the business model followed a familiar template where a holding company partners with a star, builds out the product, then licenses the image across retail and distribution. One of the key players in that space is Carma HoldCo, described as a holding company that works with celebrities to license their image and create products and brands. The complaint over Hogan’s beer says that proposals, concepts, and business plans for a wrestler themed beer were provided to Carma in September 2023, and that those materials were supposed to be the foundation of a shared venture rather than a one sided deal.
The Earlier $10 Million Beer Lawsuit That Set The Stage
The estate fight does not come out of nowhere, it follows an earlier $10 million lawsuit that already put Hogan’s beer brand under a legal microscope. That earlier case claimed that two employees stole plans for a Hogan beer brand and used them to build out the “Real American” concept without properly crediting or compensating the original company. In that suit, the plaintiff argued that the wrestler’s name and the beer’s patriotic branding were not spontaneous ideas, but the end result of a detailed pitch that had been shared in confidence and then repurposed.
Reporting on that case noted that Hulk Hogan and his partners were accused of benefiting from that alleged theft, with the “Lawsuit” spelling out how “Hogan” and Carma were central to the rollout. A separate write up on the same dispute explained that WWE icon Hulk Hogan had an alcohol brand called “Real American” beer at the center of that $10 million claim, with the complaint describing it as a wrestler themed beer company built on disputed intellectual property.
From Ring Legend To Posthumous Defendant
The legal wrangling hits differently because Hogan is not around to answer questions or testify about who promised what. The wrestler, widely known as a WWE “Hall of Famer and” legendary champion, died at age 71, with tributes at the time stressing how “Hogan” personified pro wrestling for decades. Another biographical entry notes that Hulk Hogan died on July 24, 2025, at the age of “71,” with “What” was described as cardiac arrest following surgery to address lingering neck pain issues “On July” that year.
His death left a vacuum that lawyers are now filling, with the estate pulled into ongoing fights over the beer brand and other business ventures. Coverage of the new case notes that a Lawsuit targeting the estate in a $10 million beer dispute explicitly references “Hogan’s death in July 2025,” and that the defendants in that case are now the people managing his affairs rather than the wrestler himself. A separate obituary style report, written by “Guerilu,” described how Hulk Hogan was remembered by family, friends, and fans, even as the business side of his legacy was already becoming more complicated.
Who Actually Owns “Real American” Beer?
At the heart of the fight is a basic but thorny question, who really owns the “Real American” beer idea. The complaint against Hogan’s partners says that detailed concepts for a wrestler themed beer, including branding, marketing hooks, and rollout plans, were handed over to a celebrity brand builder with the expectation of a formal deal. Those concepts, according to the lawsuit, were then used to launch a Hogan fronted beer without properly recognizing the original company’s role or giving it a stake in the profits.
The filing spells out that “Those concepts were provided to Carma in September 2023,” and that the company is arguing the proposals, concepts, and business plans formed the backbone of what became the Hogan beer. Another account of the same dispute notes that WWE icon Hulk Hogan had an alcohol brand called “Real American” beer at the center of a $10 million lawsuit, with the complaint saying the wrestler themed beer company was built on those disputed materials. A related filing points out that “Rahm Inc applied for trademarks involving the ‘Real American Beer’ name,” according to a complaint that says the company wanted to build a beer brand that could reach “by reach in the US,” a detail captured in a separate complaint.
The Estate, Nick Hogan, And A Tight Inheritance
The $10 million demand hits an estate that was already mapped out in relatively lean and focused terms. Court documents show that the late wrestling star Hulk Hogan left around $5 million behind, and that he made his son “Nick Hogan the” sole beneficiary of his estate, according to “Us Weekly” and “Court” filings. Another set of probate records, described in a separate report, notes that “According to new court documents obtained by US Weekly and TMZ, the late WWE star’s son Nick Hogan is named co personal representative,” with “According,” “Weekly and TMZ,” and filings in Pinellas County, Florida, all cited in the same passage.
That structure means the new beer related claims are not just abstract numbers on a legal docket, they land directly on the inheritance of a single heir. If the estate is forced to pay out a significant portion of that $10 million demand, it could eat into the roughly $5 million that was supposed to flow to Nick. The estate’s setup, described in both the probate summary and the estate breakdown, also means that any settlement or judgment will be closely watched by fans and creditors alike, since there is not a sprawling fortune to absorb a big hit.
The New Lawsuit’s Targets And Their Pushback
The latest round of litigation does not just name the estate in the abstract, it calls out specific defendants tied to the beer venture and accuses them of misusing a business relationship. The complaint says the defendants in that Lawsuit include entities tied to the Hogan brand and the beer company, and that they are being asked to account for how the “Real American” concept moved from pitch deck to store shelves. A related report on the same case, framed as a lawsuit targeting the estate in a $10 million beer dispute, notes that the case has become a staple of “The Scoop Entertainment Newsletter,” complete with prompts to “Submit,” “Listen,” and sit through an “Advertisement” while the audio version plays.
The defendants, for their part, have pushed back on the idea that there was any binding partnership at all. In one filing, they argue that the earlier company never had a formal agreement or relationship with them, and that the beer brand was developed independently using Hogan’s long established wrestling persona. A summary of their position notes that “The defendants in that lawsuit” insist there was no enforceable contract or relationship, a line captured in the same complaint that lays out the $10 million demand. That defense sets up a classic contract fight, with one side pointing to shared plans and expectations, and the other side saying there was never a real deal to begin with.
Carma, Celebrity Brands, And A Crowded Market
The Hogan beer saga also shines a light on how crowded and aggressive the celebrity branding world has become. Companies like Carma HoldCo specialize in taking a famous face, whether it is a wrestler, musician, or influencer, and turning that image into a line of products that can live on store shelves and in online carts. In Hogan’s case, the idea was to tap into decades of nostalgia and a built in fan base, then plug that into a beer market that has already seen everything from athlete backed seltzers to actor fronted tequilas. The complaint over the beer brand says that “Carma HoldCo is a holding company that works with celebrities to license their image to create products and brands,” and that the company was “seeking $10 million in damages” over how the Hogan beer plans were allegedly used.
The same report notes that “According to” the beer brand’s own description, the “Real American” line was pitched as a patriotic, wrestler themed drink meant to stand out in a sea of generic lagers. Another write up on the earlier lawsuit explains that Carma HoldCo was central to the rollout, with the company portrayed as the engine behind the licensing and distribution. In a separate entertainment segment, a host even joked that the same company is behind “mic bites,” described as THC gummies shaped like an ear with a little piece missing, a nod to how far celebrity themed products have stretched. That clip, captured in a “Hulk Hogan Beer Lawsuit” discussion, underlines just how aggressively these firms chase attention grabbing concepts, and how that hustle can sometimes spill over into court.
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