A still from Heated Rivalry featuring Rozanov and Hollander at a press conference.
By
Cher Thompson
Published 18 minutes ago
Cher Thompson is a Senior Staff Writer at Screen Rant, where she covers everything from explosive reality TV moments to cast interviews about the twists and turns of scripted dramas. With a background in creative writing, marketing, and teaching, Cher knows how to spot both the storytelling genius and the guilty pleasures in pop culture. Her work blends wit with insight, making readers feel like they’re chatting with a friend who just happens to know way too much about TV.
Sign in to your ScreenRant account Summary Generate a summary of this story follow Follow followed Followed Like Like Thread Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recapHBO's newest series, Heated Rivalry, will adapt the Game Changers series by Rachel Reid and follow a breakout trend in prestige drama. The Canadian series follows Hudson Williams as Shane Hollander and Connor Storrie as Ilya Rozanov, both hockey players who are competitive rivals on the ice, and building something romantic off. The romance series will delve into the world of the novels in a fresh way.
While some have been critical of Reid's novels, the buzz surrounding Heated Rivalry has been massive as it's gotten off the ground. With the show portraying a fictionalized rivalry between Russian and Canadian players, viewers are hopeful that the show will bring longstanding hockey lore into the series while teasing out the romantic elements of the popular series of novels.
With Heated Rivalry bringing a sports-centric queer romance into the spotlight, viewers have high expectations for the series to deliver in many ways. HBO Max's choice to pick up the series marks another win for those who have been watching as queer romances have begun to find their way into the mainstream. Exploring a charmingly complicated relationship, Heated Rivalry's promising to deliver.
HBO Max Will Air Canadian Sports Romance Heated Rivalry In The US
The Series Is A Canadian Produced Show
While Heated Rivalry will air on Crave in Canada, the show didn't appear to have a plan for US distribution until the last few weeks. With the buzz surrounding the series, especially in the hockey community, building ahead of its November 30 release, the announcement that Heated Rivalry would be airing on HBO Max in the US and Australia along with its Crave release was exciting.
The story, developed for the screen by Letterkenny creator Jacob Tierney, has all the makings of an epic romance, a sports drama, and a commentary on fame wrapped into one exciting package. With US viewers now getting the chance to dive into the series along with Canadian viewers, Heated Rivalry will be able to reach its audience on a global stage.
Prestige Platforms Are Chasing Queer Genre Stories Like Heated Rivalry
Platforms Are Focusing On Genre Content With Queer Elements
As viewers get ready for a rapturous queer romance to take the stage on Heated Rivalry, it's becoming clear that streaming platforms are focusing their efforts on developing genre content of all styles featuring queer relationships, rather than the relationships themselves taking precedence. While Heated Rivalry is a romance at its core, the sports genre encapsulating the story is an important piece of the puzzle.
Heated Rivalry is just one of the several shows that have opted to build a queer romance into a genre piece, rather than have the queer romance be the most important aspect of a show's story. Normalizing queer relationships in the media means choosing stories that have multiple touchpoints. Heated Rivalry will be a romance first and foremost, yes, but its hockey backdrop will serve a greater purpose.
Heated Rivalry
Like Follow Followed Drama Romance Sports Release Date November 28, 2025 Network Crave Directors Jacob TierneyCast
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Connor Storrie
Ilya Rozanov
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Hudson Williams
Shane Hollander
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François Arnaud
Scott Hunter
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Robbie Graham-Kuntz
Kip Grady
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Heated Rivalry
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