*That’s* How They Wrote Her Off?!? Teddi’s Tracker Exit Ends in Heartbreak For All Involved
Another day, another primetime exit. Ever since news that Robin Weigert would be the first Tracker cast member to officially exit the series, fans have been left with questions as to how Teddi would be written out given that her other half will remain on the show.
Weigert was an original cast member on Tracker and played Teddi Bruin, one of Colter Shaw’s handlers who found cases for him to take and did background research for him while he was on assignments. The character is married to Velma Bruin, played by Abby McEnany, who is Colter’s second handler.After one season, TVLine reported in August 2024 that Weigert would not be returning. But what happened and how was Teddi written out?
Why did Teddi Bruin leave Tracker?
The Tracker Season 2 premiere episode, “Out of the Past,” officially replaced Teddi as one of Colter’s handlers with Reenie Greene, an attorney who assisted Colter in his legal matters in Season 1. The episode saw Colter reach out to his handlers as usual. But instead of Velma and Teddi calling him from their home, as in the past, it was revealed that Velma is now working out of Reenie’s law firm.
As for what happened to Teddi, executive producer Elwood Reid confirmed to Entertainment Weekly in August 2024 that Velma and Teddi separated in between Season 1 and 2, which led to Velma moving her operations to Reenie’s office. “[Velma] and Teddy have separated.” Reid said, “Velma is struggling with what it means to be abandoned in some ways, and she’ll work her way through that emotion.”
Reid continued, “Both of these women, as they go through some stuff in their lives, are going to be able to lean on each other and get on each other’s nerves.”
During the premiere, Velma confirmed that she and Teddi were taking time apart, which is why she was spending more time with Reenie. “[Teddi] is going to be there for a while. She is helping her mom get sorted. I was getting in the way you might say and it really wasn’t good,” Velma said of Teddi going to her mother’s house. “So I came back. Don’t you worry because I am keeping busy.”
Reenie replacing Teddi as one of Colter’s handlers also helps develop the romantic storyline between them, which was hinted at the end of Season 1. “What I found was that Colter’s character is so opposed to any kind of relationship long-term because Reenie thinks that he feels guilty for always being on the road and never being able to actually be a good partner to someone, so he keeps himself away from that dynamic,” Rene, who plays Reenie, told Screenrant ahead of Season 2’s premiere.
She continued, “And I think, as much as Reenie and Colter have this chemistry of, not only playful or sexual, but a really caring friendship chemistry, Reenie thinks that just scared him off. No news here. And what’s the best way to do that, but to accept someone as they are and to be there for them anyway? And I feel like that dynamic has made their relationship stronger for sure.”
Rene also questioned whether a relationship between Colter and Reenie would be realistic given their very different lifestyles. “I mean, I love him, but do you expect me to live in a trailer? [Laughs] You know what I mean? I think that there’s so much love there, but I also think that she would never live on the road. You’ve got two people who are so unapologetically themselves that I can’t imagine how it would work, but who knows?” she said.
While Teddi is out in Season 2, Tracker won’t have a lack of characters for its sophomore season, given the return of fan-favorite actors like Jensen Ackles, who plays Colter’s older brother Russell Shaw, and Hartley’s real-life wife, Sofia Pernas, who plays rival tracker Billie Matalon.
“Jensen and I have known each other for a long time, we just never had a chance to work together,” Hartley told People ahead of Tracker Season 2’s premiere “Jensen is the perfect guy to play Russell. It’s such a well fleshed out character in the book and even more so with what we’ve done on the show.” He continued, “And then Jensen just brings to it the next level.”
