Why Did Abby McEnany Leave ‘Tracker’? How ‘Tracker’ Season 3 Wrote Off Velma

Tracker is officially back with its highly-anticipated Season 3 premiere, but longtime fans of CBS’s hit survivalist drama will notice some major cast changes in this new batch of episodes…

When Tracker returned for its sophomore season, fans were surprised to learn that Robin Weigert, who played Teddi in Season 1, was written off the show. Despite Teddi’s absence, her wife, Velma (Abby McEnany) stuck around in Season 2. But in Season 3, McEnany and her character Velma are gone as well — along with Eric Graise and his character Bobby.

Both character departures are explained during Tracker‘s Season 3 premiere, “The Process,” which airs Sunday, October 19 on CBS and streams the following day on Paramount+. But if you’re eager to learn how the show wrote Velma off before you watch or want simply want additional information on McEnany’s real-life Tracker departure, we’ve got some insights.

Why did Abby McEnany leave Tracker? How did Tracker write Velma Bruin off the show in Season 3? Who else left Tracker‘s cast? And could Abby McEnany/Velma ever return to Tracker? Here’s what to know about why Abby McEnany and Abby left Tracker.

Why Did Abby McEnany Leave Tracker?

Since original cast member Abby McEnany was introduced in Tracker Season 1 as Velma Bruin, who helped Colter track down new cases alongside her wife Teddi, fans were shocked to learn about to cast shakeup — especially since Velma remained on the show after Weigert’s departure. In the show, Velma explained that Teddi was going to be gone for a while as she was helping her mom. Meanwhile, Velma helped Reenie out in Season 2. So why is Abby McEnany leaving the show now?

While we may never know the full behind-the-scenes series of events that led to McEnany exiting the series ahead of Season 3, in July 2025, TVLine reported that series regulars McEnany and Graise had departed the series. Though McEnany hasn’t publicly spoken out on the departure yet to our knowledge, back in May, Tracker‘s showrunner Elwood Reid told UsWeekly, “I don’t want the show to be phone-a-friend every week. I think that gets old, and Justin is always challenging me on that. He’s like, ‘Do we need to do this? Do I need to call Bobby all the time? Can I do this?’ You don’t [always] see Reenie. He talks to Velma for two seconds. He may talk to Bobby for one phone call. The show works because you are over Justin’s shoulder.”

In a September 2025 interview with TVLine, Reid offered additional insight into the cast departures, saying, “We didn’t ‘replace’ Velma or Bobby. It’s about where I get the most creative juice. What happened with Randy last year was that he popped in these little pieces with Fiona, and I thought, ‘He makes Fiona better. What if they were in the same space every week?’ And now, with more characters in the office, we can tell other stories and build out what her world looks like when she’s not helping Colter.”

“Bobby felt very nestled into his place, whereas Randy’s been casting about,” Reid continued. “Without giving too much away, in the wake of [what happened with] Reenie — having had that breach at her company with Sharp, her being kidnapped and taken, and her boyfriend being shot — she’s in a fragile, somewhat dark place, although she’s trying to mask it. One of the things that she does is she brings Randy out to get her security up to snuff. That sparks a conversation about him perhaps sticking around and working out of her office — both with Colter and helping her with her law practice.”

Sp in addition to freeing Colter up a bit, it sounds like the decision to remove Velma and Bobby was also made to help deepen Rene’s character in Season 3.

Why Did Velma Leave Tracker? How Tracker Season 3 Wrote Velma Off The Show:

So how did Tracker explain Velman’s departure in the show? Around 13 minutes into Season 3, Episode 1, “The Process,” Reenie and Randy have a quick catch-up with each other in her office, during which Randy asks Reenie for an extension cord and she says, “I don’t know where any of that is, Velma does.” When Randy asks when Velma is getting back, Reenie replies, “Honestly? I have no idea. She went to go see Teddy. She’s trying to save her marriage.”

As for Bobby’s departure, several seconds after Tracker breaks down Velma’s whereabouts, Randy gets a text from Bobby that reads, “Thx. Miss u 2. Tell the gang I say hi.”

When Reenie asks how he’s doing, Randy explains, “He’s killing it. He quit his job officially at the repair shop and now he’s some encryption specialist at a new startup. Between the stock options and the salary, he’s bringing home the bacon.”

Is Velma Gone For Good? Is Abby McEnany Returning To Tracker One Day?

Curious if Velma and McEnany (or Bobby and Raise) are gone for good or they could make a triumphant Tracker return in the future? In a September 2025 interview with TV Insider, showrunner Elwood Reid said, “There’s a possibility, but right now, in this first block, no.”

In other words, never say never! But don’t get your hopes up ahead of Season 3. Instead, prepare to see more of Reenie and Randy’s storylines as the two develop a new dynamic in Velma’s and Bobby’s absence.

New episodes of Tracker Season 3 premiere Sundays on CBS with next-day streaming on Paramount+.