The Big Picture

• Jensen Ackles joins Tracker as Colter Shaw's estranged brother, Russell, while Melissa Roxburgh will play their younger sister, Dory.
• Tracker has already been renewed for a second season due to steady audience growth, following a strong debut after the Super Bowl.
• Discover the Shaw siblings' tumultuous family dynamics, shaped by tragedy and survival skills, as the drama unfolds with new episodes on Sundays.

Colter Shaw can finally fill in the missing pieces of his family tree now that CBS' Tracker has added Jensen Ackles (known for his roles in Supernatural and The Boys) to the cast as Colter's estranged brother, Russell. The confirmation of Ackles' casting came straight from Colter himself, actor Justin Hartley, who shared a video of his new TV sibling on Instagram on Thursday. The news of Ackles joining the show follows closely on the heels of another new addition to the Shaw family — Melissa Roxburgh, from Manifest, has been cast as Colter and Russell's younger sister, Dory. Viewers can expect to see Roxburgh make her debut in Episode 11, set to air on Sunday, May 5.

While the details of Ackles' character debut have yet to be revealed, fans can stay tuned for more updates as they become available. New episodes of the successful debut season are airing on CBS on Sundays at 9/8c and available for streaming the next day on Paramount+. In the series premiere on February 11, This Is Us star Hartley made his debut as Colter Shaw — a skilled survivalist who travels the country using his tracking expertise to solve mysteries while also dealing with his tumultuous family dynamics. Flashbacks revealed a unique childhood for Colter and his siblings, shaped by their parents' unconventional lifestyle living off the grid in a remote cabin near Sierra National Forest.

With Ashton and Mary Shaw, portrayed by Lee Tergesen and Wendy Crewson respectively, Colter, Russell, and Dory were taught survival skills and faced tragedy when their father went missing and was later found dead under suspicious circumstances. In the present day, Russell's attempts to reconnect with Colter have stirred up unresolved issues, leaving viewers on the edge of their seats as the Shaw family drama unfolds.

Will 'Tracker' Get a Season 2?

It sure will. Tracker debuted in February, given the best lead-in it could have asked for when it followed Super Bowl LVIII. The Super Bowl provided a massive boost to the show's debut, drawing a huge 18.4 million live viewers. Although viewership dropped to about 6 million live viewers by the second episode of the show, the series has continued to perform strongly in delayed metrics. This steady increase in viewership week after week has played a key role in the decision to renew the show, underscoring its growing audience base.

“Tracker kicked off our premiere week with a ratings bang and has kept the momentum going,” said Amy Reisenbach, president of CBS Entertainment. “We knew we had something special when we saw the very first cut of the series and the overwhelming audience response confirms it. We couldn’t be more grateful to Justin, the talented cast, the incredible writing and producing teams, and our partners at 20th Television for such compelling episodes. And, of course, we’re also so thankful to the millions of viewers tuning in each week.”

Be sure to catch the Season 1 finale of Tracker on May 19 to see how the Shaw siblings' story unfolds. See Hartley's new set video below.

Watch on Paramount+