Justin Hartley Confirms ‘Perfect Casting Choice’ To Play Brother on CBS’s Tracker…Jensen Ackles

The Young and the Restless and Passions alum Justin Hartley recently dropped a video on Instagram revealing huge casting news. He announced the identity of the actor who would play the pivotal role of Colter Shaw’s troubled brother, Russell, on CBS’s Tracker, the season’s number-one new show.

Brotherly Drama

One of the biggest mysteries of this first season of Tracker has to do with Colter Shaw’s MIA brother, Russell. Matthew Nelson-Mahood played the role in a flashback during the pilot of the series. As the season continued, Colter’s brother was on his mind but was never seen.

It’s not a surprise that the mystery is about to pick up steam. In the upcoming May 5 episode, Melissa Roxburgh of Netflix’s Manifest debuts as Colter’s sister. Now comes word that they have cast the rewardist’s brother. Hartley confirmed on his Instagram account that his longtime friend, Jensen Ackles, will play the present-day Russell Shaw.

According to TV Insider, Ackles’s debut is set for Sunday, May 12, in an episode called “Off the Books,” where the two team up and work a case.

In the video, Hartley acknowledged the great response to the show’s first season. Then he walked over to the guy they discovered was the “perfect casting choice” to play Russell. Hartley commented that this actor “knocks it out of the park every time.” With the most un-serious of voices, the This is Us alum mentioned they agreed to do this video together, but he must be busy. All of a sudden, Hartley, revealed Ackles attempting to play a video game.

Ackles commented on Hartley’s post: “I had too much fun mixing it up with you, Hartley. Let’s do it again.” He also joked that he put up the caution tape because he tends to get messy when he plays Galaga.

Meanwhile, Hartley’s co-star from This is Us, Sterling K. Brown, replied “My man” to the post. Fun fact: Brown had a recurring guest role on Supernatural, where he appeared alongside Ackles as the shady vampire hunter Gordon Walker.

For weeks, there were rumors that Ackles had signed on to play Hartley’s brother. It all started with a photo of The Boys‘ actor, Hartley, his wife Sofia Pernas (who has also appeared on Tracker), and a stuntman friend dining at a Vancouver restaurant.

And now that it officially happened, Ackles responded with his own Instagram post saying, “Working with old pals never gets old. Good times @justinhartley … thanks for the laughs, my brother. Let’s do it again.”

The Shaw Mystery

All along, it’s been clear that Colter and his family had a unique, dysfunctional, and damaging backstory. His father, Asher (Lee Tergesen), let his paranoia get to him and one night disappeared, leaving his three kids (two sons and a daughter) behind. Colter begged his brother Russell to go after him, even though he was reluctant. An hour later, Asher was found dead, and it looked like Russell had pushed his father to his death.

Fast forward to the present day, and Colter has no idea where Russell is, although his brother has tried to get a hold of him multiple times. Colter’s mom dissuaded her son from getting in touch with Russell. Needless to say, there’s a lot of baggage, issues, and clues to work through. The biggest being Russell’s innocence or guilt. At this point, Russell and Colter are on a collision course.

Post-Soap Careers

Ackles and Hartley have been friends for years and graduated from NBC soaps. Hartley had his big break with Passions, before going on to play one of the Adam Newmans on Y&R. Ackles played the OG Eric Brady on Days of Our Lives before leaving to star in shows like Dark Angel, Dawson’s Creek, and Smallville.

Before Tracker, Hartley played Oliver Queen on Smallville and became a superstar on NBC’s This is Us. And he’s currently on the cover of TV Guide Magazine for his CBS drama. Meanwhile, Ackles played Dean Winchester for 15 seasons on Supernatural before blowing up (pun intended) as Soldier Boy on Prime Video’s The Boys.

The good news is that the show will return for a second season — could Ackles also make a return appearance?

We’re so excited for Hartley and Ackles to star in the same project together. Let us know your thoughts on this casting news in the comments.