LOS ANGELES – “Tracker” may hit every city in an atlas before it ends, but the most intriguing scenes for Justin Hartley are the ones inside the Airstream.
Because it’s smaller than it looks, he must adapt to its limitations and save those grand gestures for the outdoor scenes. “It’s challenging,” the actor says.
As Colter Shaw in "Tracker," Justin Hartley travels around the country in a silver Airstream trailer.
“It’s been really cool to play in such a small space,” adds Fiona Rene, Hartley’s co-star.
“What makes the show different is we try to go into a ‘world’ each week,” says Executive Producer Elwood Reid. “If a place can speak to that world, that’s how we do it.”
Justin Hartley as Colter Shaw.
Shot around Vancouver, “Tracker” can approximate dozens of places in a single year. “Our line producer is phenomenal at creating different worlds,” Reid says.
“We’re a roadshow,” says Executive Producer Ken Olin. “We’re out on location seven out of eight days shooting. Physically, it’s challenging – particularly for Justin. It’s a very physical show and he’s in 90 percent of it.”
Those stops expand the series’ reach and provide clues to Hartley’s character, a survivalist who helps find missing people.
“I’m always hammering the writers in the room, ‘We don’t want to give too much away,’” Reid says. “The minute he starts to give it away, some of the mystery around him will sort of diminish – and that’s what’s really appealing. When you’re watching each week, you’re going to get a little piece, a kernel. If we give that up for you, we’re done.”
A hit with audiences, “Tracker” ended its first season as the No. 1 new show of the year. It succeeds, Hartley says, because “everybody’s protecting the baby. And the baby is the show. There are the viewer gods that we can’t control, but just like anything else, if you put your best foot forward and you surround yourself with the best people, your chances increase.”
Like many CBS series that came before it, “Tracker” has a formula that works. It strays – like the new edition of “Matlock” – with that overarching story that threads through the episodes.
Colter (Justin Hartley) gets information for a case from Camille Picket (Floriana Lima) in "Tracker."
“Colter came from a dysfunctional family,” Reid explains. “He bore the brunt of that … and we’re going to unpeel more stuff with his sister.” That ensures an emotional thread that appeals to both Hartley (who starred on “This is Us”) and Olin (who starred on “thirtysomething”).
Olin, who also directs the series, says “Tracker” thrives on a cinematic approach. “There are moments where this character doesn’t talk but he takes in his physical environment. People are drawn to it. I wanted to celebrate some of the aspects of North America that are positive still.”
Because Hartley is a physical actor, “we take words out all the time because he’s just giving it to you with his performance,” Reid says.
Justin Hartley stars in "Tracker."
In an episode last season, Jensen Ackles turned up as Shaw’s estranged brother Russell. The two sat around a campfire and didn’t run through pages of dialogue.
“I remember talking to Justin about it and telling him, ‘You don’t have to say much. You just look at each other,’” Reid says. “There’s a lot of history and I think that’s what makes that part of the show work so well.”
This season, Russell returns and, yes, more secrets will sort of be spilled.
“Tracker” airs on CBS.
