Tracker Season 4 Is Officially "Repiloting" The Hit CBS Action Series

Robert Voets/CBS Published Oct 6, 2026, 8:25 PM EDT Grant Hermanns is a TV News Editor, Interview Host and Reviewer for ScreenRant, having joined the team in early 2021. He got his start in the industry with Moviepilot, followed by working at ComingSoon.net. When not indulging in his love of film/TV, Grant is making his way through his gaming backlog and exploring the world of Dungeons & Dragons with friends. Sign in to your ScreenRant account After three successful seasons on the network, Tracker season 4 is shaking things up for CBS. As the action series moves its production from Vancouver to Los Angeles, so does some of its story, as the premiere kicks off with Justin Hartley's Colter Shaw venturing to the California city for a case involving a dangerous smuggling mission out of its port. As Tracker season 4 progresses, however, Colter will continue to take on cases from around the country, with everything from dense forests to deserted Texas towns. Alongside Hartley, the new season of the hit action series will feature the returns of Fiona Rene as Reenie, Chris Lee as Randy, Sofia Pernas as Billie and Cassady McClincy Zhang as Melanie, having been promoted to series regular for season 4. Additionally, Jensen Ackles will be back in a guest appearance as Colter's brother Russell, picking up from the Tracker season 3 ending in which he began working for DARPA in order to keep a dark family secret from his brother. Ahead of the show's return, ScreenRant's Grant Hermanns interviewed Elwood Reid to discuss Tracker season 4. When asked about the biggest mentality in the writers room this season compared to previous ones, the showrunner began by acknowledging the shift in production locations for the show, saying that the creative team is "essentially repiloting" the action thriller on every level, even down to "the look of the show": Elwood Reid: My entire crew, which is the day-to-day people that make the show outside of the writers, it's like a new show to them. So, we have access to new locations, new looks, amazing actors here in California. So, what we're trying to do this season is [figure out] how do we, as you said, put the past behind us quite a bit. That doesn't mean it can't come back up, as there's a little stinger at the end of last season that kind of promises some interesting story. Not big backstories about the parents, but it puts an interesting kink in the relationship between the two brothers. It puts a little stick in the spokes. Robert Voets/CBS Reid went on to share that another key element the writers room took to discussing when developing Tracker season 4 was to start "getting to know Colter more in between jobs," as well as finding ways to "challenge him morally and physically." The showrunner explained that one of the biggest things helping set the CBS series apart from the wider procedural genre is that "there's a real emotional component to the storytelling" as every episode finds Colter racing against the clock to find whoever he's been hired to save: Elwood Reid: Nothing wrong with [police procedurals]. I've done a million of them, but most police shows, the person's already dead, and you're just trying to get answers for the loved ones. Here, the loved ones are the people that are hiring you. They're the people that they're looking for. There's keen emotional stakes and a clock on that case, and Colter is able, most of the time, to bring a pretty happy result to it. As such, in taking the show's formula and "scrambling the furniture a little bit" in its latest set of episodes, Reid teases that Tracker season 4 will see Colter's jobs "get into some morally darker gray areas" and potentially hint at a "much longer storyline" connected to "a bigger bad guy out there." The showrunner/executive producer also teased that while the first three seasons "did the family stuff" and "mined all there was to get out" of it, that doesn't mean there won't be more backstory insight for Hartley's character: Elwood Reid: We still know very little about Colter's life after that messed-up family, and when he became a tracker, and also what he does in between these cases. So, I think there's a lot of real estate that we can play with as far as exploring his character and what makes him tick, and giving him different kinds of cases that really shake him up and rattle him a little bit. I think those are things that we're looking to do. Colter's Home Base Will Be A Wealth Of Story When It Returns Sergei Bachlakov / CBS ScreenRant: Since you talk about the "repilot" and moving to California, that was a big shock that came at the end of season 3, the home base that Colter has had this whole time. Even though we love that Airstream of his, which felt perfect for the Canadian wilderness compared to L.A. I'd love to hear you know what it was like developing that idea for him, and also how that's going to, for Colter as a character, more so than just the show as a whole, evolve him beyond the roaming in the trailer that we've seen in the previous seasons. Elwood Reid: Well, this season, we're beginning the seeds of a possible relationship for Colter. It's not in his backyard, but it takes place geographically. Justin and I have talked a lot about this is somewhere nearby where his place is. So, again, I think with a character like Colter, part of his appeal is the mystery, because he is inherently a stranger in town every week when he comes to town. That seems to give stakes to every episode, because he doesn't know anybody, doesn't have resources, people sometimes don't want him there, so that's something we're playing with. He did let Keaton into his sort of Batcave, if you want to call it that. So, he clearly trusts Keaton, and I think there's going to be a storyline we're playing with this year where we could go back to that home base, and see what that is. We left it on the table, who knows if we'll ever go back there? There was a lot of talk last season, when you do get to his home, is there like a closet full of cases he couldn't solve, or is there something that's eating in him? We talked a lot about what that looks like as a physical space, and how that impacts him mentally. But I don't think it's a place that he shares with a lot of people. So, I think we've been treating that very carefully in the writers room. This can't be a domestic show where, every week, he leaves his house and goes to work. I just think that gets away from the essential appeal of the show. Hartley's Committed Presence Is What Sets Tracker Apart Robert Voets/CBS Elwood Reid: Sometimes the chemistry is forced; you're trying to find it on the page. But those guys had it from day one, and that's testimony to — again, I said this a million times — Justin's superpower as an actor. He has chemistry with almost everybody. I would not be able to do this show if I had [a different] actor. Most shows are bred on familiarity, you get the same pieces, and you just keep mixing up the same ingredients every week. Every single week, I have to reboot the show. He comes into town, and I have to have him instantly connect, or come into conflict with these people that he's trying to help, and Justin, as an actor, is able to do that. That's not a common skill in a lot of actors. I'm reminded of it every day, and I'm always reminding the writers of it every day. Yes, the show's about him tracking and finding people, but it's about that initial thing. He makes a connection with people very quickly, and I'm always resetting that table. The hope is now that we're in California, the access we're going to have to an amazing cast that will come play with us for one day or two is going to be amazing. Robert Voets/CBS I'm excited to continue to explore that element of the show, which is, again, I know not the most sexy thing. But the bread and butter is when you get a really good actor, and someone's missing somebody, or needs Colter's help, there's that look that Justin gives you. He makes a promise he's going to go help that person get a result. It works every time, and that's because I think of the work that Justin does as an actor. It doesn't seem cheesy. There's always kind of a wink to that stuff. It's what I always said, when I came into the show, which is there is an old-fashioned earnestness to this show, which I think is refreshing in today's TV market. Everyone kind of is winking. There's a bit of irony in that. There isn't a lot of irony in Colter's world, and I think that's something that's lacking in our society right now. I do think that's one of the reasons people find the show, because Justin's not opening up and blubbering and going to therapy every week. But when he does open himself up emotionally to these people, he's trying to help. It has impact. It's he means it, and I think that's something that's fun to pull off on network television. Be sure to dive into our other Tracker season 4-related coverage with: Elwood Reid teasing Jensen Ackles' return as Russell and his new story Reid addressing the chances of Colter's original team returning in season 4 Reid teasing how Tracker season 4 is changing Colter's cases New episodes of Tracker season 4 air Sundays at 9:30 p.m. EST on CBS! Release Date February 11, 2024 Network CBS Showrunner Elwood Reid Colter Shaw travels across the country making his living by collecting missing persons rewards, utilizing sharp instincts and expert tracking skills. With help from a small support team, he works alongside private citizens and law enforcement while staying one step ahead of violent suspects. Writers Ben H. Winters, Hilary Weisman Graham Main Genre Drama Creator(s) Ben H. Winters Executive Producer(s) Hilary Weisman Graham, Ben H. Winters, Justin Hartley, Ken Olin Producers Jeffery Deaver Seasons 4 Where To Watch Paramount Plus