# Justin Hartley
**Justin Hartley** (Justin Scott Hartley, born 1977) is an American actor, director, and producer known for playing Foxworth Crane on the soap opera *Passions*, Oliver Queen on *Smallville*, Kevin Pearson on *This Is Us*, and Colter Shaw as star and executive producer of the CBS drama *Tracker*.[1](https://id.loc.gov/authorities/no2012003596) • [2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 1977, Knoxville, Illinois; birth name Justin Scott Hartley[1](https://id.loc.gov/authorities/no2012003596) • [3](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/justin-hartley/bio/3030390729/) |
| Breakout role | Kevin Pearson on *This Is Us* (cast 2016), with Critics Choice nominations in 2019, 2020, and 2021[4](https://www.vulture.com/2018/06/justin-hartley-this-is-us-profile.html) • [2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/) |
| First lead role | *Tracker* (CBS, 2024), star and executive producer; over 80 million viewers to date[5](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2024-02-09/justin-hartley-tracker-cbs-super-bowl) • [2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/) |
| *Tracker* ranking | #1 series on network television at the end of season one, the first new series to rank #1 since *Survivor* premiered in 2000[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/) |
| Daytime career | Foxworth Crane on *Passions* (2002–2006, over 400 episodes); Adam Newman on *The Young and the Restless* (2014–2016), with a Daytime Emmy nomination[6](https://www.nbc.com/nbc-insider/who-is-justin-hartley-this-is-us) • [7](https://justinhartleyonline.com/) |
| Production company | ChangeUp Productions, with an overall pod deal at 20th Television signed in 2019[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/) |
## Early life and education
Hartley was born in Knoxville, Illinois, in 1977, and raised in Orland Park, Illinois.[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/) He attended [Southern Illinois University Carbondale](https://www.edgepedia.org/southern-illinois-university-carbondale) and the University of Illinois at Chicago, majoring in history and theater, before moving into acting.[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/)
## Daytime television and early roles
His first paid acting job was on the NBC soap opera *Passions*, where he played Foxworth Crane in more than 400 episodes from 2002 to 2006.[6](https://www.nbc.com/nbc-insider/who-is-justin-hartley-this-is-us) He received 2005 Soap Opera Digest Award nominations for Outstanding Younger Lead Actor and Favorite Triangle for the role.[3](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/justin-hartley/bio/3030390729/)
He was originally cast as the title character in a CW pilot for *Aquaman*.[3](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/justin-hartley/bio/3030390729/) He returned to daytime late in the following decade as [Adam Newman](https://www.edgepedia.org/adam-newman) on CBS's *The Young and the Restless* from 2014 to 2016, a role that brought a nomination for the 2016 Daytime Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, along with a 2015 Gold Derby TV Award for Lead Actor in a Daytime Drama.[7](https://justinhartleyonline.com/) • [3](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/justin-hartley/bio/3030390729/)
## Primetime breakthrough
Between the soaps, Hartley built a primetime record as Oliver Queen, the [Green Arrow](https://www.edgepedia.org/green-arrow), on [The CW](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-cw)'s *Smallville*, a role he held for five years in Vancouver from 2006 to 2011; during that run he also wrote one episode and directed another.[4](https://www.vulture.com/2018/06/justin-hartley-this-is-us-profile.html) • [7](https://justinhartleyonline.com/) He followed with recurring roles in the third season of *Revenge* (2013–2014) and the final three seasons of *Mistresses* (2014–2016).[7](https://justinhartleyonline.com/)
In 2016, after two auditions, he was cast as Kevin Pearson on NBC's *This Is Us*. Vulture described his casting as following 15 years of steady work; the Los Angeles Times later described him as a self-described journeyman actor.[4](https://www.vulture.com/2018/06/justin-hartley-this-is-us-profile.html) • [5](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2024-02-09/justin-hartley-tracker-cbs-super-bowl)
## This Is Us and mainstream success
*This Is Us* debuted in 2016, and the Associated Press reports it was the first role that brought Hartley a level of fame that led to security and opportunities.[8](https://apnews.com/article/justin-hartley-whats-next-fbe32cfe5e406a1c6a165cc9d6765ead) His performance as Kevin Pearson drew Critics Choice Award nominations for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series in 2019, 2020, and 2021.[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/) [TV Guide](https://www.edgepedia.org/tv-guide) additionally lists a 2022 nomination in the same category, a fourth year that IMDb's summary does not include.[3](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/justin-hartley/bio/3030390729/)
With the ensemble, he won Screen Actors Guild Awards for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series in 2018 and 2019. Over its run the series earned more than 234 award nominations and 55 wins.[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/) Hartley also directed the season 4 episode "A Hell of a Week: Part Three" (#413).[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/)
## Tracker and leading-man status
*Tracker*, Hartley's first lead role in a series, premiered after the [Super Bowl](https://www.edgepedia.org/super-bowl) in February 2024 on CBS. He stars as Colter Shaw, a lone-wolf survivalist and reward seeker who roams the country in an [Airstream](https://www.edgepedia.org/airstream) using his tracking skills to help private citizens and law enforcement, and he executive produces through his company ChangeUp Productions. The series is based on [Jeffery Deaver](https://www.edgepedia.org/jeffery-deaver)'s bestselling novel *The Never Game* and is produced by 20th Television.[5](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2024-02-09/justin-hartley-tracker-cbs-super-bowl) • [2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/)
The show's performance made it the #1 series on network television at the end of its first season, with more than 80 million viewers tuning in to date, and it marked the first time a new series had ranked #1 since CBS's *Survivor* premiered in 2000.[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/) Season 2 debuted on CBS on October 13, 2024, with episodes also streamed on Paramount+.[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/) Shaw's storyline includes the suspicious death of his father, for which he believes his estranged brother should be held responsible.[5](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2024-02-09/justin-hartley-tracker-cbs-super-bowl)
## Film, voice work, and production
His first major role after the *This Is Us* finale in May 2022 was the Netflix holiday film *The Noel Diary*, based on Richard Paul Evans's novel, which he starred in and executive produced; it debuted at #1 on Netflix in November 2022.[8](https://apnews.com/article/justin-hartley-whats-next-fbe32cfe5e406a1c6a165cc9d6765ead) • [2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/) He appears in the film *Bride Hard* alongside [Rebel Wilson](https://www.edgepedia.org/rebel-wilson), Anna Chlumsky, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, and [Anna Camp](https://www.edgepedia.org/anna-camp).[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/) In audio, he voiced Batman opposite [Christina Ricci](https://www.edgepedia.org/christina-ricci) in the Spotify/DC/Warner Bros podcast *Harley Quinn & The Joker: Sound Mind*, which debuted in January 2023.[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/)
Behind the camera, ChangeUp Productions signed an overall pod deal with 20th [Television](https://www.edgepedia.org/television) in 2019, and the company develops projects with Hartley at its head.[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/) • [8](https://apnews.com/article/justin-hartley-whats-next-fbe32cfe5e406a1c6a165cc9d6765ead)
## By the numbers
- **80+ million**: viewers who had tuned in to *Tracker* to date after its post-Super Bowl February 2024 premiere.[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/)
- **#1**: *Tracker*'s rank on network television at the end of season one, the first new series to hold that rank since *Survivor* in 2000.[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/)
- **More than 234 nominations, 55 wins**: awards recognition for *This Is Us* over its run.[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/)
- **400+**: episodes of *Passions* in which Hartley played Foxworth Crane from 2002 to 2006.[6](https://www.nbc.com/nbc-insider/who-is-justin-hartley-this-is-us)
- **#1**: debut position of *The Noel Diary* on Netflix in November 2022.[2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/)
## Reception and recognition
The Los Angeles Times framed *Tracker* as a throwback to the classic private-eye shows of the 1970s and 1980s, with Hartley's Colter Shaw as its centerpiece, and described his move to star and executive producer as a new point in a career built on supporting parts in large ensembles.[5](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2024-02-09/justin-hartley-tracker-cbs-super-bowl) His individual recognition spans daytime and primetime: a 2015 Gold Derby TV Award and a 2016 Daytime Emmy nomination for *The Young and the Restless*, three or more Critics Choice nominations for *This Is Us*, and a 2024 CinEuphoria Merit Honorary Award.[3](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/justin-hartley/bio/3030390729/) • [2](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/)
## References
1. [Hartley, Justin, 1977- , LC Linked Data Service, Library of Congress](https://id.loc.gov/authorities/no2012003596)
2. [Justin Hartley, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1261997/)
3. [Justin Hartley Biography, Celebrity Facts and Awards, TV Guide](https://www.tvguide.com/celebrities/justin-hartley/bio/3030390729/)
4. [Justin Hartley's Long Road to 'This Is Us', Vulture](https://www.vulture.com/2018/06/justin-hartley-this-is-us-profile.html)
5. [With 'Tracker,' Justin Hartley charts a new path in his Hollywood career, Los Angeles Times](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2024-02-09/justin-hartley-tracker-cbs-super-bowl)
6. [Who Is Justin Hartley From This Is Us?, NBC.com](https://www.nbc.com/nbc-insider/who-is-justin-hartley-this-is-us)
7. [Justin Hartley Online](https://justinhartleyonline.com/)
8. [Justin Hartley embarks on new chapters after 'This is Us', AP News](https://apnews.com/article/justin-hartley-whats-next-fbe32cfe5e406a1c6a165cc9d6765ead)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Screen actors of the Anglosphere and Europe › American actors: 2000s onward › Surnames H to Ha*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license