Spoiler alert! This post contains details from the series premiere Tracker.
Justin Hartley returns to network television with another post-Super Bowl premiere.
After Super Bowl LVIII, viewers will be introduced to CBS’ Colter Shaw. Tracker. Colter is a lone wolf roaming the country as a bounty hunter, using his expert tracking skills to help ordinary citizens and law enforcement officials solve all kinds of mysteries while dealing with his fractured family.
Based on the book Never game By Jeffrey Deaver, Hartley teased Deadline that the series will largely depart from the source material but will maintain the character’s “sensibilities.”
Furthermore, the series will function as a procedural, with Colter dealing with new missing persons cases each week while also struggling with the trauma of his past… which is now coming back to haunt him.
Below, Hartley spoke with Deadline more about bringing the series to CBS, getting through the difficult past few years to bring it to the small screen, and where he sees things going from here.
DEADLINE: I heard you participated in the presentation. How did you get involved in that?
Justin Hartley: (Ken) Olin and I worked together this is us. We were talking about doing something together. We wanted to continue working together when the show ended. So, the year before the last season was filmed, or right before the final season was filmed this is us, we ended up getting this book and we loved this character and we brought it to 20th, which is my studio where my production company is based. We pitched to them the idea of having Colter Shaw with me directing and producing, and they loved the idea. And they said, “Okay, let’s move forward with this.” We pitched it to CBS, and they loved the idea of Ken and I selling that to them over the phone… It’s like, be careful what you wish for, because then all of a sudden we’re like, “Okay, now” we have to deliver. But I feel like we’re here. We’re almost done with Episode 6 of Season 1. I think we have something that’s really unique and cool and fun, and I think it has a lot of heart, and it has a lot of places. She has a backstory, and that’s something I’m really proud of. I think it’s special.
DEADLINE: What attracted you to play the role as well as produce?
Hartley: Well, I just love acting. I loved it this is usAnd I loved working all the time. I think I’ve loved every acting job I’ve ever had. So I knew I wanted to continue acting. The show gave me the opportunity to not only do that, but also wear another hat as an executive producer and have that creative input and control. So it’s kind of the best of both worlds. I always love to learn new things. What better way to do this than to learn from the best? I mean, I’m taking lessons from Ken, which is pretty cool.
Delivery time: Tracker It definitely has some elements of a family drama similar to this is usBut Coulter is a completely different character than Kevin. What have you enjoyed about this character so far?
Hartley: It was absolutely wonderful. I mean I enjoyed every second, every frame I saw this is us. it was amazing. What a trip. That character has moved on, if you think about where we found him and where we left him, we’ve come full circle. From a man-child to an adult and responsible man. It’s just been a really great journey with this character. First of all, just selfishly, it’s nice to be able to play a different character. As much as I love Kevin… I think it’s great as an actor to be able to take on a completely different role. I mean, you’re getting rid of a lot of things you’re used to and wearing a lot of things you’re not used to wearing. I don’t even think these two would be friends. you know what i mean? They are very different. But lucky for me I was able to play with both. So it was great. Not that I wouldn’t want to play a character very similar to Kevin again in the future, but certainly coming off this show, it’s really an actor’s dream to play a completely different role.
DEADLINE: How closely will the series follow the events of the book it’s based on?
Hartley: Well, we make our own stories. We don’t really tell the story of the book. We basically take the character. And then you have to adapt the character…you have to add and subtract a little bit from that character that’s in the book. For example, in the book, Coulter talks a lot to himself in his brain. He has a lot of percentages in his brain. And it’s like, well, you have to figure out the logistics of how that looks on camera. I mean, do you want people to see how Coulter thinks? So do you want the internal dialogue to be a voiceover? Or do you want to write it on the screen? Or do you want to assume that? Or do you want to see it in his eyes? How do you want to do it creatively? But he still has the same backstory, and he still has the same sensibilities. (He) does his job the same way, but you just have to… augment it in other ways to make it TV-friendly. And that’s what we did.
DEADLINE: Percentage of the thing is interesting. How did you get to the way he was discussing it out loud with the people around him?
Hartley: I think if you do it in a way that has him stating those numbers to himself, we’re asking the audience to believe that when Coulter asks, “Just trust me on this,” that this person will actually trust him. Numbers rattling around in your head…sounds like some kind of serial killer. I won’t trust this man. This guy is a whack job. No one trusts you my friend, you look strange just talking to yourself. You run numbers, you run percentages. What’s going on here? It’s easier for us to just say, “Okay, look, go ahead.” It gives this person information. He’s trying to help them. It makes it easier for me as a viewer to believe that this (person) would trust this man who spends so much time explaining to him how he can help him or where the danger lies, where the risky things are. For me, that’s what convinced me about the way we were going to present all that information.
DEADLINE: We learn in the first episode that Colter’s brother is trying to contact him, but we don’t know why. Can you talk about what we might be able to see this season with this relationship?
Hartley: Well, I can tell you that there are a lot of questions Coulter has about his childhood, and about his family. There are a lot of assumptions that he makes that we realize throughout the season may not necessarily be true. The questions he has may change based on new information he finds or discovers. Things that don’t add up anymore. This is really going to be a really interesting place. If you are wondering if your mother is lying to you about certain things. I’m sure my mother never lied to me about anything (laughs). But it’s bad. His brother is responsible for his father’s death. This is terrible, isn’t it? It doesn’t get much worse than that. You have a brother who reaches out to you and says, “Okay, why now?” So we answer all these questions for you. There is a reward for all of this. It’s a slow burn, but it makes a lot of sense. It is certainly very rewarding.
DEADLINE: Do you have a roadmap for where the series could go after season one?
Hartley: I think it would be fun to see him reveal a little more than he bargained for. I’d like to see Coulter in a position where you, as an audience member, are afraid because he might be beyond his capacity. If you can imagine what that might be. However, I think it will be fun to see him/her and after that, he has to get some answers and some peace with his past and peace with his family. We have a lot to unpack. If people enjoy watching it, we will definitely have stories to tell for years.
DEADLINE: The series premieres after the Super Bowl, which is a very coveted spot. How did you feel when you found out?
Hartley: I’m really proud, because it was years in the making. We’ve been through a pandemic with the show. We’ve had a writers’ strike with the show and an actors’ strike with this show. We’ve been through a lot with the show. She lived through it all and thrived through it all. Now we’re showing not only the premiere, but right after the Super Bowl. It’s all worth it. It feels really great. It’s my second Super Bowl. So, you know, I get it.