Tracker Faces a Major Season 3 Shake-Up in 2026 — And Fans Will Want to Save the Date

CBS has big plans for Tracker. Justin Hartley’s hit series has swiftly turned into the top show on the network, and it’s only getting more popular.

The series is currently a few episodes into its Season 3, and will wrap up the first half on Dec. 7, before going into an extended hiatus. Season 3 continued to be just as popular, as it brought back Jensen Ackles as Russell Shaw, Hartley’s character Colter Shaw’s brother, and has been topping the charts ever since. However, CBS has other plans for Tracker, as its new schedule reveals a major change.

When it returns from its hiatus, CBS has decided to move Tracker to a new timeslot. The series usually airs at 8 p.m. ET, but it will shift to 9 p.m. ET starting after the midseason break. Tracker will return on Sunday, Mar. 1, and the episode will air from 9 p.m. ET to 10 p.m. ET. At least, Justin Hartley’s survivalist series doesn’t change its air date.

The reason for the changes is its new midseason premieres. One of them is Tom Ellis’ CIA, the long-delayed FBI spinoff, which encountered several setbacks and was pushed to the midseason release. The show will debut on Feb. 23, 2026.

The Yellowstone spinoff series, Y: Marshals, marks the other new release. The new spinoff will be taking Tracker‘s usual spot at 8 pm ET on Mar. 1. Sunday marked a good day for changes because Watson will also be affected by the changes, and will follow after Tracker, starting at 10 p.m.

Tracker has been a major hit for CBS, as recent reports revealed that Season 3 averaged just below 14 million viewers across multiple platforms over its first seven days. The figures put it ahead of ABC’s High Potential, which received 1.5 million fewer viewers for its Season 2, which also set a major record compared to its debut season.

Tracker Is Unstoppable

Image via CBS

Tracker has been a major hit for CBS since its premiere. It debuted on Feb. 11, 2024, with 18.44 million viewers on Super Bowl night. While it never returned to those high numbers, all three seasons have averaged around 7 to 8 million views per episode.

The series proved it was truly unstoppable after its Season 3 shakeup. The series lost Abby McEnany and Eric Graise, who played Velma and Bobby, ahead of Season 3’s debut. Their departures came as a shock, as Season 2 had already lost Robin Weigert, who played Teddi. However, even with the two big losses, Tracker pushed forward, and continued to bring CBS countless wins.

Tracker returns with new episodes on Sundays until its midseason break on Dec. 7. The second half of Season 3 will premiere on Mar. 1 at 9 p.m.