Justin Harley's procedural series poses a unique problem for CBS when contemplating options for spinning off the popular Tracker show to make the series a franchise. All things considered, it looks like it may be too early to consider what another installment of Tracker would look like, despite the show's popularity. Tracker was the most-watched television series of the 2023-2024 cycle, and so, while it's likely that audiences want more of the story, showrunners have indicated the challenges that the series faces with spinning off of the TV series as early as Tracker season 2.
The flagship Tracker series, which premiered its first season early in 2024, is still revealing the foundation of its own story. Tracker season 1 introduced Justin Hartley as protagonist Colter Shaw, a reward-seeker who finds missing persons across the country in exchange for the posted reward money. The series is a procedural that follows Colter on a case-of-the-week basis, but there is an underlying plot regarding who killed Colter's father in Tracker. While a spinoff is an exciting prospect, the series is still exploring the basis of that story and how Colter operates alongside the charismatic Tracker cast of characters.
Tracker's Premise Makes It Difficult To Launch A Good Spinoff
Tracker Focuses On A Singular Character
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On top of the timing, Tracker's premise makes it difficult to launch a solid spinoff show. Unlike other successful CBS procedural series like NCIS and FBI that feature ensemble casts, Justin Harley's series is focused solely on Colter Shaw. As such, launching a spinoff is a huge risk, since any follow-up series will lack Tracker's quintessential element: Colter Shaw himself. While it was a big risk for NCIS to continue without its central Leroy Jethro Gibbs character when Mark Harmon exited the series, it maintained other senior cast members like Sean Murray who were just as important to its appeal.
Tracker showrunners Elwood Reid and Ken Olin have addressed the possibility of a Tracker spinoff with TV Line, saying that it won't happen yet. Reid noted he has seen some TV shows suffer from spinning off too early, noting that Tracker is at a crucial crossroads in its production. He called Tracker, with Justin at its center, "singular," resonating the idea that a Tracker spinoff would suffer without the franchise's only main character. Other Tracker characters like Fiona Rene's Reenie Green feel essential to the show. Still, they are ultimately replaceable, whereas the flagship couldn't survive without Colter Shaw.
Tracker Doesn’t Need A Spinoff (Despite The Show’s Success)
The Tracker Flagship Has More Territory To Explore
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In the interview, Reid further explained that Tracker doesn't need a spinoff series, despite the show's successful first season. Reid explained that Tracker's premise is contrary to location-based cop series that are bound to the geography they center on. Instead, Colter's mobility as a singular character and the show's procedural format allow producers to take the central character into any realm they want him to be in. As such, Reid explained that Tracker can "go into any world" when Colter takes on a case, with the show's premise reaching far beyond homicide.
The producers' comments suggest that, at this point, there are many stories that the flagship Tracker series can take on before it diverges to focus on a spinoff story. While Colter's best moments in Tracker season 1 already paint a diverse picture of what the reward-seeker is capable of, the series has only scratched the surface of the kinds of cases that Colter can take on and the places he can go. Any comments from showrunners thus far suggest that there is a preference to put Colter in new situations, versus extending the series beyond its central character.
What Would A Tracker Spinoff Show Even Look Like?
Russell Shaw Is The Most Suitable Candidate
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Despite what showrunners have said, Tracker has a few plausible options for a spinoff series. Despite a shortened episode count, Tracker's first season introduced other characters that were well-established enough to lead their own series in a Tracker spinoff. The best and most likely Tracker character to lead a spinoff is Colter's brother, Jensen Ackles' Russell Shaw. After being established in the series' exposition that featured flashbacks to Colter's childhood, as well as some text message exchanges between the brothers, Jensen Ackles finally appeared in a popular performance in Tracker season 1's penultimate episode.
Jensen Ackles proved he was capable of holding down the main character role in Supernatural and has a track record of compelling performances. That said, Jensen Ackles will star in a new series on Prime Video by One Chicago creator Derek Haas called Countdown, so the former Supernatural star will be somewhat tied up in that for the foreseeable future, as well as in a continuation of his Solider Boy character from The Boys in Vought Rising. That said, Ackles has proved he can balance a tight schedule, meaning he could potentially include a Tracker spinoff in his roster.
Russell would be a prime candidate for a spinoff series, since his work and life are separate from Colter and often contrast with the reward-seeker. What's more, Jensen Ackles has a fairly auxiliary role in Tracker's first two seasons, meaning that moving him to a spinoff series wouldn't detract too much from what comprises Tracker. It also seems likely that if Ackles starred in a Tracker spinoff, he could still make appearances on the flagship. It would be a neat possibility to explore, even if just in a limited series for Paramount+ that focused on Russell's Horizon Group work.
Source: TV Line
