Justin Hartley’s ‘Tracker’ Just Scored CBS Its Biggest Hit of the Fall Season

The popular series, which also features Jensen Ackles in a recurring role, returned on Oct. 19 and netted 12.97 million viewers according to Nielsen’s live+7-day multiplatform data, per Variety. The show was already a hit in Season 2, but Season 3’s viewership proved to be 17% higher than the previous season, according to CBS. The return of several of CBS’s most successful shows, according to the network, now puts it at No. 1 among live+7 TV ratings for entertainment, averaging 6.8 million viewers in total across all platforms. ABC came in second with 6.5 million viewers, and NBC and Fox came in third and fourth place, with 5.7 million and 3.1 million viewers.

Tracker wasn’t the only CBS show to make its mark this fall, per Nielsen. According to the most recent multiplatform 7-day viewing chart for the current broadcast season, Matlock, 60 Minutes, Boston Blue, and Sheriff Country also performed well for the network. Matlock, starring Kathy Bates as the titular character, has been averaging 10.7 million viewers after its first two episodes this season. 60 Minutes has had an average of 8.9 million viewers after four episodes, and Boston Blue has averaged 8.64 million viewers since its premiere on Oct. 17. The Fire Country spinoff, Sheriff Country, starring Morena Baccarin, is also off to a good start and is averaging 7.73 million viewers since its Oct. 17 premiere.

CBS is also crushing it in the comedy department with its new sitcom DMV. The sitcom, starring Tim Meadows, debuted on Oct. 13 with 6.6 million viewers, which is up 46% from Poppa’s House, which premiered in the same time slot last season. Additionally, Ghosts returned for its fifth season earlier this fall with an average of 8.27 million viewers, and the first two episodes of Elsbeth had an average of 8.26 million viewers. Premiers of Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage and Season 8 of FBI also came in with respectable viewership numbers, averaging 7.85 million and 7.58 million viewers, respectively.

The Future of Jensen Ackles on Tracker

Image via CBS

Tracker will return with its next new episode on Nov. 9. Season 3, so far, has seen the return of Jensen Ackles as Colter Shaw’s estranged brother, Russell Shaw. The Supernatural star appeared in the second episode of Season 3, titled “Leverage,” but Tracker executive producer Elwood Reid said in a previous interview he would love it if Ackles returned to reprise his Russel Shaw role in more episodes.

“Who knows what the future holds?” Reid said. “I love writing for Jensen, and I think he and Justin are so good together. There’s just a chemistry that those two have. It would be fun to continue to play with Jensen in our world or in a possible world of his own. I mean, one can always hope,” Reid added.