Justin Hartley had some standout moments as Colter Shaw in Tracker season 1. The character is central to Jeffery Deaver's Colter Shaw series, a collection of stories that inspired the CBS series. Tracker debuted after the Super Bowl in 2024, offering a shortened season due to the Writer's Guild of America strike. That said, the 13-episode set packed a punch and garnered a renewal for Tracker season 2 after just four episodes. An average of 19 million viewers watched the drama's first seven episodes, making it the most-watched non-sports television show of the 2023-2024 cycle.
In season 1 of the series, Justin Hartley established a compelling on-screen version of Deaver's Colter Shaw character: a self-proclaimed "rewardist" who makes a living finding missing persons and cashing in the reward money. Colter works with a skeleton team that is scant but effective. The Tracker cast includes Abby McEnany and Robin Weigert, who portray Velma and Teddi Bruin as Colter's handlers. He also gets help from Bobby Exley and Reenie Greene, portrayed by Eric Graise and Fiona Rene, respectively. While his team is indispensable, some of Colter's best moments in Tracker season 1 happen when he's working solo.
10Breaking Into The Burger Bin Office In "Klamath Falls"
Colter Shaw Set The Tone In Tracker's Pilot Episode
A moment in Tracker season 1, episode 1, "Klamath Falls," set the tone for how Colter would operate. He broke into the office at the Burger Bin, a fast food restaurant, and the last known location of Gil Brown, the 14-year-old teenager Colter was tracking. While his mother believed Gil's father had abducted him, Colter quickly verified the man who kidnapped the boy was not his dad by breaking into the office to look at the security tapes. It could have taken weeks to access the footage, and Colter knew it was time he didn't have.
That was why Colter locked himself in the office with little disregard for the police, who happened to be on-site and arrested him as soon as they got to him. By then, the self-proclaimed "rewardist" had already gotten the information he needed to tip Gil's mother. Colter could manage this behavior with the help of his handlers, who immediately found someone to negotiate his release from jail. This moment is one of Colter's best because it sets the tone for his character: a lone-wolf modern cowboy willing to skirt the law to facilitate justice.
9Jumping Off The Cliff In "Klamath Falls" To Swim A Missing Child To Safety
Justin Hartley's Character Used Probabilities To Save Lives
Justin Hartley's character took a brave risk based on probabilities in "Klamath Falls." Colter found Gil, but his captor died by suicide. The perpetrator's loss of motor function sent the truck that Colter and Gil were in the back of partially off the edge of a cliff. This caused the pair to hold on for dear life, but in a shocking twist, Colter told Gil that he thought they should let go. Colter Shaw made this decision based on probability. Luckily, the math added up, resulting in safe passage for both of them.
Colter explained that he was a good swimmer but was suffering from a gunshot wound and losing strength. He proposed that they take a chance and let go so he could swim to safety rather than wait the 30 minutes it would take for the emergency rescue to occur. He knew the car could fall, or they could lose their grip during that time. Colter explained that if they let go, the odds of him swimming them both to safety were 95 percent in their favor. He did precisely that.
8Breaking Into The Cult Office In "Missoula"
Colter Obtained Evidence Of A Murder
A hunt for a missing person led Colter to a cult in Tracker season 1, episode 2, "Missoula." He was looking for Jackson, an accountant who got caught up doing the group's finances. Jackson found salvation in the cult that was being run by Seth and Rebecca Pendergast. Colter was allowed to enter the cult to talk to Jackson on the condition he agreed to be interviewed by the leader, Seth, who had obtained vital information about the Shaw family to hinder his investigation. Seth's research attempted to put Colter in a vulnerable position, which somewhat happened
When he broke into the cult's office, Colter found evidence that tied the cult to the murder of their last accountant, who discovered the leaders' criminal activity. Colter not only used the evidence to convince Jackson of the cult's true intentions but also to shut the cult down and put Rebecca and Seth behind bars. It was one of Colter's best moments because it established his work principle: while he concerns himself with missing persons, the thoroughness of his investigations often leads to much more extensive results.
7Giving Noah A Token In "Mt. Shasta"
Colter Helped Reenie's Close Friend Erika
Colter worked closely with Tracker team member Reenie Greene in season 1, episode 4, "Mt. Shasta," to help return her close friend Erika's missing son, Noah. Noah attended an academy for teenagers who benefit from alternative schooling called Shelter Stone, which boards their students and teaches them survival skills. Noah spent 24 hours alone in the woods after he escaped an abduction by his girlfriend's ex-boyfriend, who he stood up to for assaulting her. The victim survived due to the skills he garnered at Shelter Stone, and when the case was over, Colter took a moment to acknowledge Noah's accomplishment.
Colter gave Noah something he had found in the woods. He told Noah when he was growing up, his father pushed him pretty hard (as they did at Shelter Stone). He recalled that his father would give him something as a reminder of the challenging tasks he had completed. Colter, therefore, gave Noah a relic to remember surviving in the woods. Reward-seeking is more than just Colter's job; he sees parts of himself in the lost people he helps.
6Convincing Sully Not To Kill Clemons In "Camden"
Colter Saved Ethan Sullivan For Daniela Twice
Colter Shaw flexed the whole gamut of his negotiation skills in Tracker season 1, episode 8, "Camden," where he was working to reunite a local woman with her missing fiancée. When he found him, Ethan "Sully" Sullivan was hungry for revenge. After Colter freed the victim, he went after the person who kidnapped him and forced him to help with a drug smuggling operation. Sully wanted to kill Clem and had him at gunpoint, but Colter calmly enticed him to put down the gun and choose to put his criminal past behind him (rather than making it his present).
Ultimately, Sully surrendered the gun. He reunited with his fiancée, Daniela, despite a willingness to sacrifice the entire relationship to exact his revenge. Colter helped Sully see that his future could be different. Hartley's hero knew Sully had much to gain by stepping away and everything to lose by engaging. Colter's negotiation skills made Tracker's titular character all the more impressive and compelling.
5Taking Down Lana's Missing Person Sign In "Aurora"
Colter Went Above And Beyond In Helping Lana Russo
At the end of Tracker season 1, episode 9, "Aurora," Colter made a small gesture of great significance. After Colter reunited a missing teenager with her dad, he took down the missing person sign, which the father had attached to the tree in the front yard for three years. It was another significant moment for Colter's character development. He knew that if he took the sign down, Lana or her father wouldn't have to, and they could officially begin to move on.
Colter knew, perhaps more than anyone, the importance of being able to move on from complicated family trauma – which the episode centered on as it tackled Errol and Maeve Price's story. Colter sought information about the mysterious death of his father so that he could find peace with his family situation. It was what he helped Lana and her father push forward despite the tragedy, and Colter effectively signaled the beginning of their new life by taking the poster down.
4Skydiving In "Into The Wild"
Colter Helped Gil Birmingham's Character Find His Missing Son And Daughter
Colter went skydiving in Tracker season 1, episode 10, "Into the Wild." It was a remarkable moment for the character, proving he was comfortable in any survival situation. Colter had to drop into the woods off of a small plane to investigate the missing son and daughter of Reenie Green's family friend. The friend owned a remote outfitting and charter business in the wilderness of the Idaho mountains. Its terrain was so remote that Colter could only access the crime scene via airdrop. It was one of the most immersive action moments from season 1, delivering beautiful aerial cinematography.
Colter didn't hesitate to drop out of the airplane, making it one of his best moments because it encapsulated a core thread about who he was. Colter succeeded because he could take on harrowing circumstances due to extensive wilderness and survival training in his youth. Colter dove head-first into the action, where many people might stop and pause.
3Quoting Noam Chomsky In "Beyond The Campus Walls"
The Tracker Quoted The Professor To Bobby Exley
In season 1, episode 11, "Beyond Campus Walls," Colter quoted Noam Chomsky to Tracker team member Bobby Exley. He said, "The education system is designed to weed out people who are independent, people who think for themselves, won't surrender to the system." It was one of his character's best moments for several reasons. Firstly, it was a little out of character for Colter to quote or refer to anyone except for his father, who had a massive influence on his life. That said, Colter revealed a moment later that the quote was one his father used to recite when he complained.
It was one of Colter's best moments from season 1 because the quote perfectly summarized the ideology that drove Colter's childhood and defined who he was as an adult. Colter's past and present were non-traditional, and his father was at the helm of shaping that. The quote provided valuable insight into Colter and his father's mentality.
2Fighting With His Brother Russell In "Off The Books"
Justin Hartley Teamed Up With Jensen Ackles In The Penultimate Episode
Colter was initially skeptical of his elder brother, Russell Shaw (Jensen Ackles), but their reunion was one of the best episodes of Tracker season 1. The show's leading man believed that his brother killed their father after he found Russell standing at the top of the cliff from which his father died falling off. In Tracker season 1, episode 12, "Off the Books," Russell attempted to clear his name and sought help on a job. Colter and his brother worked together, making for some of the season's best action.
In Tracker season 1, Russell was a mercenary for a government contractor called the Horizon Group, and his work mandated that he couldn't involve local law enforcement. As such, Russell and Colter endured multiple fights on their own, including a shootout. They never called in backup, which was impressive. Instead, they worked together using their instincts to fight, which they had built up in their childhood.
1Taking Time For Himself In The Tracker Season 1 Finale
Colter Shaw Knew Something About The Art Of Balance
One of the best moments for Colter Shaw was in the Tracker season 1 ending when the character finally took a moment to relax after a run of grueling jobs that pushed the tracker physically and mentally. The moment was one of Colter's best because it captured the essence of his character. While he put himself in harrowing circumstances, it was because he knew he could handle them. The character had a pronounced self-awareness of his limits, so he was aware of when to step back and take a break.
In the Tracker season 1 finale, the audience witnessed Colter taking a moment to stare at the sunset before he ran towards the waves with a surfboard as the Rolling Stones' "Gimme Shelter" played. After a season of compelling mysteries that brought him steps closer to uncovering the truth about his father, Colter needed time to sit and reflect before making his next move, and that's precisely what the protagonist did. There was a self-governance to Colter's character – freedom to his lifestyle on the road – that made him as enjoyable to watch in Tracker as he was compelling.
