Tracker just introduced Justin Hartley‘s newest — and potentially most significant — love interest after several changes in season 4.
During the Sunday, October 18, episode of the hit CBS series, Colter (Hartley) was seen fixing up his car by visiting a store specializing in spare parts. There he shared a few loaded moments with Jenna Nova (Gillian Bolt).
The duo bonded while looking for a bench that Colter could use to restore his dad’s truck. Jenna made the first move by asking Colter out to dinner, which he accepted. Later in the episode, he told Jenna over the phone that he wasn’t sure when he was coming back to town when she called with news about a possible car bench.
Jenna told Colter he only had two weeks to claim the item — and he subtly implied that he would make sure they would have their date before the two weeks are up.
The surprise connection comes after executive producer Elwood Reid told Us in August that Colter would meet someone new, adding, “One of the things I think we’re trying to do this year is open up life outside of the office. With Colter, we’re going to see the buds of a relationship forming.”
According to Reid, the show is dropping hints at something larger.
“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.”
Though Colter has a connection with Billie (Sofia Pernas), nothing is off the table.
“This is much different. … Then the other thing, which is just an overall theme of the show, is how can we test and challenge Colter morally and physically,” Reid added.
He continued: “Many TV shows — long-running network shows — have characters who become infallible and become superheroes. There’s nothing wrong with that. But I think that one of the strengths of Justin as an actor is he has access to this emotional component or dynamic that a lot of leading men tend not to have. What does it look like when he fails or makes a mistake and that costs somebody their life or doesn’t get a result? Those are the things that I’m excited about getting into this year.”
The hit CBS series, which premiered in February 2024, introduced fans to survivalist Colter, who travels the country to help solve various missing persons cases. Colter’s job hasn’t allowed him to explore a serious relationship in the past — but that could change. (The show has also kept shaking things up with cast changes — and a relocation to Los Angeles in season 4.)
“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 to Us. “Would that blow the relationship up? Would that deepen the relationship?”
Reid also pointed out that Colter might not be “in any position to have any kind of long-term relationship.”
“We don’t want him to be a guy that just rolls into town and romances somebody and then leaves the next day,” he said. “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 airs on CBS Sundays at 9 p.m. ET before streaming the next day on Paramount+.
