Justin Hartley Reveals How ‘Tracker’ Season 2 Could Handle Loss of a Key Cast Member
Tracker fans may soon get some answers about the surprise departure of this cast member.
Executive producer and showrunner Justin Hartley teased some of the season 2 storylines for the main characters, telling TV Insider on Wednesday, September 4, “At the end of last season, Reenie [Fiona Rene] decided to leave her company and go into business for herself. She had a big change in her life and in a way, she teamed up with Velma [Abby McEnany] and you’ll see a lot of scenes of the two of them working together, which is a really interesting dynamic.”
Velma was paired in scenes with Reenie after Robin Weigert, who played Teddi, left the show. Teddi and Velma are a married couple who helped Colter solve his missing persons cases for a reward. Now Velma will be moving on to a new job since her wife isn’t there to help with cases like she usually does.
“[Reenie and Velma] both have the same goal but they go about it in completely different ways,” Hartley continued. “Bobby [Eric Graise], our computer genius, is working his tail off. Then we have a couple of really fun surprises for Reenie.”
Hartley also explained how Jensen Ackles and Melissa Roxburgh will be returning to play Colter’s siblings despite their busy schedules. (After both were introduced in the first season, Ackles was booked on the upcoming Prime Video horror series Countdown while Roxburgh will star in NBC’s midseason drama The Hunting Party.) “[Melissa’s] show wrapped [production] before we did so we could have her back for the final episodes of the show,” the actor noted. “And then Jennifer Morrison will come back to direct episode 6. I’m sure her character will be back.”
Tracker, which premiered in February, follows survivor Colter as he travels the country helping solve missing persons cases, tracking down information on criminal cases, and more. The procedural side of the show has allowed Tracker to feature a number of star-studded cameos from actors like Ackles, Roxburgh, and even Hartley’s wife, Sofia Pernas.
“We have another season to shoot that we have to do better than season 1. So while we want all those storylines to have closure, we also want those closures to lead to other questions — bigger, deeper questions — about his past,” Hartley told Deadline in May about his vision for season 2. “So I think we did that in answering some of the questions that we’ve been building up over the course of the year. I think we did a good job of making sure that the answers to those questions then lead to a bigger mystery, something that we can address in season 2.” Hartley joked that viewers can expect Colter to have more run-ins with the law, saying, “We have a running joke, though, about how many times Colter has broken the law. Our video department made a list and it was ridiculous. My idea is, maybe at the end of season 2, my closing gift to everyone will be a hoodie that lists all the things he’s done.” He continued, “Like assault, burglary, kidnapping, all that stuff. But that’s a long list. Every episode, he does something illegal, right?”
