Justin Hartley

• Current lead role: Stars as Colter Shaw, the reward-seeking survivalist at the center of CBS's Tracker (2024-present), and serves as an executive producer. Tracker premiered on February 11, 2024, as the lead-out broadcast following Super Bowl LVIII on CBS.
• Breakthrough drama role: Played Kevin Pearson across all six seasons of NBC's This Is Us (2016-2022, 106 episodes), the role that brought him his widest mainstream recognition.
• Superhero television role: Played Oliver Queen / Green Arrow in The CW's Smallville (2006-2011, 72 episodes), becoming the first actor to portray a live-action version of the DC Comics hero.
• Daytime serial career: Built his early career in daytime drama, playing Fox Crane on NBC's Passions (2002-2006) before taking over the role of Adam Newman on CBS's The Young and the Restless (2014-2016), which earned him a Daytime Emmy nomination.
• Producing and directing: Moved behind the camera as well as in front of it: he directed episodes of This Is Us (2020-2022) and Smallville (2011), co-wrote a 2010 Smallville episode, and holds executive-producer credits on Tracker (2024-) and The Noel Diary (2022).

Performance style

• Low-key leading-man register — The series-level critics consensus compiled by Rotten Tomatoes (a 89% approval rating from 19 critic reviews) singles out 'Justin Hartley's swaggering appeal' as the anchor of Tracker, describing the show as taking 'a spartan approach to a classic formula' to yield 'a highly efficient entertainment'. The quote is the critics' assessment of the series and its lead, not an individual performance review.

Reception

• Tracker (2024-present): Tracker premiered to a Super Bowl lead-out in February 2024 and became one of CBS's biggest scripted performers; its third season averaged 8.08 million live viewers and scaled to roughly 16-17 million per episode with DVR and streaming counted, per reporting on the network's renewals.

Cast they appear alongside

• Fiona Rene as Reenie Greene (Tracker) — Series regular; the attorney in Colter's support network.
• Jensen Ackles as Russell Shaw (Tracker) — Recurring as Colter's estranged older brother.
• Robin Weigert as Teddi Bruin (Tracker) — Season 1; one of Colter's two handlers.
• Abby McEnany as Velma Bruin (Tracker) — Seasons 1-2; Colter's second handler.
• Eric Graise as Bobby Exley (Tracker) — Seasons 1-2; the hacker in Colter's network.
• Brent Sexton as John Keaton (Tracker) — Season 2 onward; a former detective tied to Colter's 'white whale' case.

Who plays Colter Shaw in Tracker?

Justin Hartley. He stars as Colter Shaw, the reward-seeking survivalist at the center of the CBS series, and is also an executive producer on the show.

What is Tracker based on?

Tracker is based on the 2019 novel The Never Game by Jeffery Deaver. The series was developed for television by Ben H. Winters and premiered on CBS on February 11, 2024.

What else has Justin Hartley been in?

His best-known credits are Kevin Pearson in NBC's This Is Us (2016-2022), Oliver Queen / Green Arrow in The CW's Smallville (2006-2011), Fox Crane in NBC's Passions (2002-2006), and Adam Newman in CBS's The Young and the Restless (2014-2016). He also had recurring roles in Revenge and Mistresses.

Is Justin Hartley a producer on Tracker?

Yes. Hartley serves as an executive producer on Tracker in addition to playing the lead role, and he had previously taken producing credits on The Noel Diary (2022) and directing credits on This Is Us.

How many seasons of Tracker are there?

Three seasons have aired as of 2026: Season 1 (premiered February 11, 2024), Season 2 (October 13, 2024) and Season 3 (October 19, 2025). CBS renewed the series for a fourth season in January 2026.

• Tracker — show hub
• Tracker cast guide
• All Actors & Cast
• Adam Scott
• Billie Piper
• Britt Lower
• Catherine Zeta-Jones
• Christina Ricci
• Christopher Walken
• Dichen Lachman
• Emma D'Arcy
• Emma Myers
• Evie Templeton
• Fred Armisen
• Georgie Farmer
• Gwendoline Christie
• Hunter Doohan
• Isaac Ordonez
• Jamie McShane
• Jen Tullock
• Jenna Ortega
• Joanna Lumley
• John Turturro
• Joy Sunday
• Luis Guzman
• Moosa Mostafa
• Patricia Arquette
• Percy Hynes White
• Riki Lindhome
• Sarah Bock
• Steve Buscemi
• Thandiwe Newton
• Tramell Tillman
• Victor Dorobantu
• Zach Cherry