Heated Rivalry has become the internet’s latest obsession, with its steamy and smutty storyline about two hockey players who are locked in a forbidden romance.
The Canadian TV series stars Connor Storie as Ilya Rozanov, a Russian American player for the Boston Raiders, and Hudson Williams as Canadian-born Shane Hollander of the fictitious Montreal Metros. The show is adapted from Rachel Reid’s novel of the same name, and it has no shortage of bittersweet romance and sex scenes—some fans also say that it’s a pretty faithful adaptation in terms of sex content.
“What I loved about [the story] and why I did ultimately think it was adaptable is because sex is the language of their love,” creator Jacob Tierney told The Hollywood Reporter. “Sex is how you tell the story because their sex changes as they get to know each other, as they get to know themselves.”
Are Connor Storrie & Hudson Williams Gay?
Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams haven’t said anything about their own sexualities publicly. However, creator Jacob Tierney answered a question in Xtra Magazine about casting queer actors for queer characters, and the actors blending their personal lives with their professional.
“I don’t think there’s any reason to get into that stuff,” he told the outlet. “I’ll tell you something about the casting of both of these roles. You can’t ask questions like that when you’re casting, right? It’s actually against the law. So what you have to gauge is somebody’s enthusiasm and willingness to do the work. And that’s what’s so impressive about both of these guys is they came into this being like, ‘Yeah, we’re here to do this, and we are here to make this story feel authentic and to be as real as possible.’ And they fucking hit it out of the park. “
“Who I date, who I sleep with, who this, that, whatever, I’m gonna keep that to myself,” Storrie said. “All I can really say is that I love Ilya, I love the community that this is a part of and that this caters to. I think that’s so much more interesting and valuable than doing just another run-of-the-mill, straight story.”
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The two actors gushed about their instant chemistry with each other during the audition process. “Hudson was the third actor that I read with,” Storrie told Out Magazine. “The first two, I was like, ‘OK, this is cool,’ and then Hudson came on. Jacob [Tierney] actually texted me directly and was like, ‘What do you think?’ And I was like, ‘Yeah, Hudson, for sure.’ Instantly.”
“I read with one other possible Ilya, and it was good,” Williams recalled. “But something about Connor… There was an inexplicable X-factor that just felt realer than what I thought it could possibly be. And that was something. I had a quote I told Jacob, at one point, about my read with Connor in particular.”
“Hudson told me, ‘The other guy was good, but Connor felt like he was going to pin me down and fuck me,’” Tierney revealed. “That is literally what he said. And I was like, ‘Well, I think I cast this right.’”
Lea Veloso
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