Tracker’s Colter Shaw is exceptional at finding missing people, but that doesn’t mean he never faces challenges along the way.
In Us‘ exclusive clip from the Sunday, October 4, episode of the hit CBS series, Colter (Justin Hartley) strolls into a gas station looking for help, telling the cashier, “I was wondering if you were by chance working last night.”
He continues: “A couple of people were taken from your alley and I was hoping to get a look at your security footage. Just trying to help them out.”
While the cashier initially gives Colter a hard time, a $50 bill ultimately wins her over.
According to the official synopsis, the season 4 premiere follows Colter’s search for a teenage boy’s missing father. The case “leads him to a dangerous criminal operation at the Port of Los Angeles” — and his outcome remains unclear.
Based on Jeffery Deaver‘s novel The Never Game, Tracker shows Colter traveling around the country helping to find missing people and solving cold cases. The series usually has a clear cut formula, but executive producer Elwood Reid teased a twist could be headed Colter’s way.
“One of the things I think we’re trying to do this year is open up life outside of the office,” Reid exclusively told Us ahead of Sunday’s episode. “With Colter, we’re going to see the buds of a relationship forming.”
According to Reid, the show is dropping hints at something bigger amid his connection with fellow tracker Billie (Sofia Pernas).
“We don’t know what it is yet. So it’s someone who Colter is pursuing — and what does that look like? Then can we get a much larger story out of that?” he continued. “That’s one thing that I think is unique to this season, which is we just never see Colter in a social and possibly romantic situation outside of the Billie universe.”
Reid also pointed out that Colter might not be “in any position to have any kind of long-term relationship.”
“We’re not just jumping right into it. We’re just showing the buds of it. This is the seed we’re planting, but what would happen if that relationship got leveraged against him somehow or that person or somebody close to that person got into a situation that needed Colter’s help?” Reid noted. “Would that blow the relationship up? Would that deepen the relationship?”
The show is looking to explore ways to shake things up for Colter.
“We don’t want him to be a guy that just rolls into town and romances somebody and then leaves the next day,” Reid told Us. “I do think he has a bit of a code and [we’re] playing with that a little bit. But with an actor like Justin, it’s just being able to see him flex that muscle a little bit because he is very charming. … Colter is a team leader, so he doesn’t want to show that weakness, but could we find somebody that he could open up to a little bit?”
Tracker returns to CBS Sunday, October 4, at 9:30 p.m. ET before streaming the next day on Paramount+.
