Hot New (Gay) Hockey Series on CRAVE

[TonyDown]

7 hours ago, Gar1eth said:

I've just watched Episode 5 for about the third or fourth time.  Ilya's monologue, even in Russian, gets to me. And the last scene while Shane and his family are watching the game, as well as Ilya and his teammates-Shane and Ilya's emotions get to me too. I'm glad Scott has a chance to be happy too. 

 

I felt emotions well up.

Folks at a sports bar in WEHO got excited.

 

 

[d.anders]

7 hours ago, TonyDown said:

Folks at a sports bar in WEHO got excited.

This video went viral. So many people showing it on their podcasts. Who would have thought?

[TonyDown]

7 hours ago, d.anders said:

This video went viral. So many people showing it on their podcasts. Who would have thought?

Exactly!

By now I wonder if Netflix is regretting dropping Boots!   

No use crying over spilled milk.

At least we get Season 2 of Heated Rivalry.😃

 

 

Edited December 23 by TonyDown

[riowanderer]

Both stars are signed for 3 seasons, but not sure how they'll be able to stretch the second book "The Long Game" about their relationship into another two full seasons?:) S2 filming is slated for sometime likely in July in Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, and Muskoka cottage country a few hours north of Toronto. The scene in "Russia" where IIya expresses his love for Shane was actually filmed on a warm night last May in Hamilton, Ontario with falling snow flakes being generated by machine only on the right side of the tunnel if you watch carefully!:)

Edited December 24 by riowanderer

[samhexum]

On 12/21/2025 at 8:36 AM, d.anders said:

This isn't Paddy Chayefsky. 

Who grew up in the same building as Neil Simon, Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, and Penny Marshall... directly across the Grand Concourse from Rob Reiner.

On 12/22/2025 at 7:27 PM, Gar1eth said:

Ilya's monologue, even in Russian, gets to me. 

It was a tremendous scene, but I watched it with a smile on my face thinking about how they ripped off my favorite scene from Grey's Anatomy.  Meredith was stuck in an elevator with a hot young doctor who had been pursuing her who we had recently found out was born in Italy and spoke fluent Italian.  While they were in there, they discussed both being the children of famous surgeons and Dr. Deluca alluded to trouble his father had gotten into. When Meredith suggested he tell her about it he told her the whole story in Italian. Later on in the episode, the conversation was getting heavy and she told him to just go back to speaking Italian and he said "I'm going to kiss you and you're going to let me and I'm never going to stop."

At that point she replied in Italian that was obviously learned phonetically for the scene, "did I ever tell you that I took Italian for three years in college?" and he said wow and she said yeah, and just as they were about to kiss the elevator doors opened, and they were rescued by a repairman played by Mandy's father from Georgie and Mandy's first marriage.

So in my head I was thinking that Dr. Grey would have answered in badly accented Russian.

 

Edited December 24 by samhexum
for absolutely NO @%!*ING reason at all!

[dutchal]

8 hours ago, samhexum said:

It was a tremendous scene, but I watched it with a smile on my face thinking about how they ripped off my favorite scene from Grey's Anatomy.  Meredith was stuck in an elevator with a hot young doctor who had been pursuing her who we had recently found out was born in Italy and spoke fluent Italian.  While they were in there, they discussed both being the children of famous surgeons and Dr. Deluca alluded to trouble his father had gotten into. When Meredith suggested he tell her about it he told her the whole story in Italian. Later on in the episode, the conversation was getting heavy and she told him to just go back to speaking Italian and he said "I'm going to kiss you and you're going to let me and I'm never going to stop."

At that point she replied in Italian that was obviously learned phonetically for the scene, "did I ever tell you that I took Italian for three years in college?" and he said wow and she said yeah, and just as they were about to kiss the elevator doors opened, and they were rescued by a repairman played by Mandy's father from Georgie and Mandy's first marriage.

So in my head I was thinking that Dr. Grey would have answered in badly accented Russian.

If the Ilya monologue in Russian came from the book, it was unlikely to be a rip-off.  The Grey's Anatomy episode to which you refer first aired on January 17, 2019, and Heated Rivalry was first published on March 25, 2019, which means the scene was written months before that.

Edited December 24 by dutchal

[+ Gar1eth]

12 hours ago, samhexum said:

So in my head I was thinking that Dr. Grey would have answered in badly accented Russian

Why would Meredith reply back to a guy speaking Italian in Russian-badly accented or not? Did you by chance mean Shane answering back?

[+ SirBillybob]

The Russian monologue as spoken in the series is not in the book directly or modified as verbalized dialogue from the book but is cobbled together from Ilya’s thoughts about his discontent as if that would be the spoken content. The only line referenced is his key admission, which he muses afterwards about having verbalized, but the setup suggestion made that he best unburden in Russian is replicated. He also later processes in his mind what he had said and its implications. 

Some scenes’ dialogue is lifted from the book text but much of the books’ narrative is, as would be expected, characters’ interior content. There is a lot more emotional attachment thinking and associated mixture of elation and associated anxiety than can get realistically translated to film.

Edited December 24 by SirBillybob

[TonyDown]

For fans that want more...

This is a great article in GQ with so many interesting tidbits about the show and great photos.

'Heated Rivalry' Stars Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams Talk Hockey, Sex Scenes, and Overnight Success | GQ

WWW.GQ.COM

---

Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams were both virtual unknowns when they signed up to star as on-the-DL hockey players in a boldly...

 

[+ SirBillybob]

7 minutes ago, TonyDown said:

For fans that want more...

This is a great article in GQ with so many interesting tidbits about the show and great photos.

'Heated Rivalry' Stars Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams Talk Hockey, Sex Scenes, and Overnight Success | GQ

WWW.GQ.COM

---

Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams were both virtual unknowns when they signed up to star as on-the-DL hockey players in a boldly...

 

It tracks as they are hooking up gentlemanly about quarterly 

[samhexum]

1 hour ago, Gar1eth said:

Why would Meredith reply back to a guy speaking Italian in Russian-badly accented or not? Did you by chance mean Shane answering back?

No, I meant that, in Shane's situation, Meredith would have had a rudimentary understanding of Russian and would have surprised Ilya by showing that she understood exactly what he said.  

If the show follows Grey's lead, Ilya will be stabbed to death next season by a human trafficker he had discovered.  (I still mourn for Dr. DeLuca.)

[d.anders]

I guess I'm a little worried about oversaturation, and the too-fast, all-consuming publicity grab. I realize as actors you have to strike when the iron is hot, but these guys are everywhere, all-the-time, responding to the most inane interviewers, and being asked the most ridiculous questions. Enough already. Be careful what you wish for.

Apparently, backlash has already started because Connor Storrie refuses to answer questions about his private sexual preferences, and Kit Connor from Heartstopper has already spoken out about it, given what happened to him in social media.

From mad, obsessive love usually comes hate. America's infatuation with pop stuff can change on a dime. I wish these guy's handlers would cut back a bit on the social media shithole.

Maybe it's just me.

[dutchal]

1 hour ago, d.anders said:

I guess I'm a little worried about oversaturation, and the too-fast, all-consuming publicity grab. I realize as actors you have to strike when the iron is hot, but these guys are everywhere, all-the-time, responding to the most inane interviewers, and being asked the most ridiculous questions. Enough already. Be careful what you wish for.

Apparently, backlash has already started because Connor Storrie refuses to answer questions about his private sexual preferences, and Kit Connor from Heartstopper has already spoken out about it, given what happened to him in social media.

From mad, obsessive love usually comes hate. America's infatuation with pop stuff can change on a dime. I wish these guy's handlers would cut back a bit on the social media shithole.

Maybe it's just me.

Both Hudson and Connor were waiting tables until shooting for Heated Rivalry began.  Give the kids a break--they need to make hay while the sun shines.

Both Hudson and Connor have now signed with CAA, about the best in the business, so the current handlers supposedly know what they're doing.

This is definitely not going to die down until sometime after this week's finale.  Production realities being what they are, there's going to be a gap of at least a year before we see season two, so there will be plenty of time for it all to die down to a simmer from the current boil.

[d.anders]

31 minutes ago, dutchal said:

they need to make hay while the sun shines

I did not know S1 was only 6 episodes. Wow, that's not a lot of product. You are right, the time gap will be significant.

33 minutes ago, dutchal said:

so the current handlers supposedly know what they're doing.

Not much faith in the Hollywood machine. I hope the boys have something more reliable in their lives to deal with instant fame. Typically, it takes time for the money to catch up to the hype. Fame can fuck with a young mind. Too many ugly stories about that.

[TonyDown]

4 hours ago, d.anders said:

I guess I'm a little worried about oversaturation, and the too-fast, all-consuming publicity grab. I realize as actors you have to strike when the iron is hot, but these guys are everywhere, all-the-time, responding to the most inane interviewers, and being asked the most ridiculous questions. Enough already. Be careful what you wish for.

Apparently, backlash has already started because Connor Storrie refuses to answer questions about his private sexual preferences, and Kit Connor from Heartstopper has already spoken out about it, given what happened to him in social media.

From mad, obsessive love usually comes hate. America's infatuation with pop stuff can change on a dime. I wish these guy's handlers would cut back a bit on the social media shithole.

Maybe it's just me.

 

 

Yeah, some folks like to complain and nitpick.  Other fans are psychopaths.  Having social media handlers is a good idea.  I wonder if that is a thing. 🙂

We can put the complainers and psychopaths on ignore though, instead of engaging with them.

Asking Hudson and Corrie personal questions about their life irritates me.  I don't want to know or need to know more than they are willing to portray in their vlogs.

The GQ article hinted that the boys aren't really raking in big money, that the Crave production was relatively small.  Kudos for their success and taking full advantage of the HBO exposure!!

The last episode is coming up in a matter of hours, and then this will die down until Season 2, sometime in 2027.   

 

Edited December 25 by TonyDown

[d.anders]

14 hours ago, TonyDown said:

The GQ article hinted that the boys aren't really raking in big money, that the Crave production was relatively small.  Kudos for their success and taking full advantage of the HBO exposure!!

I've been watching some Jacob Tierney videos. It sounds like their budget had lots of restrictions. He's extremely lucky his 6-episode effort is getting so much attention. And maybe HBO is picking up some bills.

Nobody makes a killing on the pilot or the first season. Unknown actors are usually making scale. CAA should help with securing some commercial bucks. Imagine the need to wait tables to pay rent, while dealing with this kind of instant fame. Season 2 can't come fast enough.

[TonyDown]

6 hours ago, d.anders said:

I've been watching some Jacob Tierney videos. It sounds like their budget had lots of restrictions. He's extremely lucky his 6-episode effort is getting so much attention. And maybe HBO is picking up some bills.

Nobody makes a killing on the pilot or the first season. Unknown actors are usually making scale. CAA should help with securing some commercial bucks. Imagine the need to wait tables to pay rent, while dealing with this kind of instant fame. Season 2 can't come fast enough.

 

It's good to know quality content can arise from a small scale.

I don't know how it all works, but I sure hope HBO gave Connor and Hudson something nice in their Christmas stocking.   

 

[d.anders]

32 minutes ago, TonyDown said:

It's good to know quality content can arise from a small scale.

Especially a gay story that's exciting to watch. I too hope Connor and Hudson are being treated well in this early stage. From what I've been reading, neither is wealthy, and both have to find a way to sustain life until the next pay check. I believe they get paid by the week once they start filming, and the paycheck depends on what salary was negotiated per episode. They lose a lot in taxes, so it may take some time before they can ride high like Timothée Chalamet, who at 29 is now making a fortune. 

[+ glutes]

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/23/arts/television/heated-rivalry-connor-storrie-hudson-williams.html?unlocked_article_code=1._U8.k3N2.n0bCWibpOTvS&smid=url-share

 

[+ purplekow]

On 12/20/2025 at 11:52 PM, Manhattan said:

Quality is objective. 
McDonalds serves low quality meals by every measure, but it's still very popular. 
People can enjoy McDonalds, but I hope they don't think it's good. 
Viewers may enjoy Heated Rivalry, but I hope they allow themselves to realize it's also low quality fare. 
 

Some posts are low quality and that is my snobbish opinion.  

[+ Gar1eth]

I just finished episode 6. I thought it moved on the slow side to begin with. But maybe I'm just tired as I finished it about 15 minutes ago. And it's now 1:22 AM. 
 

So minor spoiler-I'll space it down so people can avoid if they want. 
 

 

 

Shane and Ilya finally meet for their one on one time.  Both of them are nervous. Shane more externally nervous. While this is fiction, it put me in mind of my first overnight with an escort. I had only been hiring about a year at that point. Thank gosh for The Review Site in helping me choose. I had tried several guys. One guy that I was interested in was the porn star Sam Tyson-blond and athletically muscular was definitely my type. But I think he was busy when I would  have wanted him. 
 

This was back in 2003. Hooboy was still with us. At that time there were two escorts out of Baltimore/DC area. A couple. I can't remember their escort names. And one has since died of cancer. The other as far as I know is still alive but not escorting. The one who died had kind of burly daddy coach/woodcutter look. I still remember a picture of him on the Review Site wearing a cap, a plaid loggers shirt with the sleeves torn off. 
 

I was attracted to him. I think he advertised as versatile but seemed more of a top  But his partner was more classically good looking and athletic. Maybe not so intimidating to me -not like his partner with the coach look. So I chose the athletic partner. 
 

In those days I had a career. And a group from my company was attending a convention in Orange County. We were all staying at one hotel. But we were coming in a day before the convention.  I made some excuse and booked a different hotel from the rest of the group for one night. 
 

So here I was. I flew the escort in from probably Baltimore to John Wayne Airport in Orange County. I was so nervous. He had a stellar reputation. But what if he no-showed. Or on the other hand what if he actually showed up. I think i remember somehow getting past security to get back at the gate area even though I didn't have a ticket. I waited for the escort's plane. He did make it. He came off the jetway. I think I followed him to baggage claim and then introduced myself. 
 

It ended up being a good meeting. I was sorry it was just overnight. I believe we ended up having two more overnights together before he quit advertising  

 

 

[TonyDown]

I just finished Epi 6.  I'm satisfied. ❤️

MUSIC

I enjoyed the Heated Rivalry music and just learned there is a Heated Rivalry soundtrack on Spotify and a playlist on YouTube, for those interested.

The Epi 6 intro hits at about 6 minutes with a French song I love called L'anarchie des jours heureux, by a performer from Montreal called La Bronze, a Moroccan-Canadian musician and actress.   

 

 

I love the dramatic music choice, for the scene where Scott comes out on the ice, that plays through to Ilya's "I'm coming to the cottage" at the end of Epi 5, called I'll Believe in Anything by Wolf Parade, an indie rock band from Montreal.

 

 

Edited Friday at 09:24 AM by TonyDown

[d.anders]

I loved the final episode. So many wonderful moments to savor. Can't wait to watch it again.

I saw this after watching:

I don't know who the woman is, and I don't know this Channel well. I think it's a politics channel. But I am fascinated by heteros who are fans of this show. Even though she can't stop giggling, she speaks from her heart about why this show affects her.

[+ SirBillybob]

Spoiler alert …
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Book: Jeep Cherokee not Range Rover. Dishwasher pods not phone charger lame excuse. No extended parent-child catharsis scene that I recall from finishing the book this week; that was written in to add emotional range even if thematically cliché, to the series’ credit.

Edited Friday at 03:56 PM by SirBillybob

[+ SirBillybob]

The follow-up book beginning is already padded with many other characters as they weave into the couple’s life with varying degrees of being in the loop. Will be interesting to see what treatment the script will get as much of the ambiguity related to two solid pairings is essentially in the rear view mirror. I imagine some additional weighting will be given to the Scott/Kip narrative as that represents at least one complete novel and Arnaud has alluded to signing on.

Some articles refer to Bridgerton and its popularity arc, breaking out into additional couplings by follow-up seasons, with the running thread of a different type of secrecy, but at least those characters were mostly all introduced first season so the springboard was there.

Edited Friday at 04:33 PM by SirBillybob