At the jam-packed Milano Rho Ice Hockey Arena on Thursday, where the United States was playing Czechia in a preliminary round Olympic hockey game, the Heated Rivalry effect was out in full force.
A trio of moms in their 40s bought late seats to the affair, since the hit HBO Max drama about a pair of hockey rivals who fall in love—one Canadian, the other Russian—gave them the bug. Then there were the trio of American college kids from the U.S, studying abroad in Italy, at the game who just wanted to chat about the show. As did the Olympic hockey fans from Czechia, Scotland, and elsewhere. “I’ve been to a couple [New York] Rangers games, my dad played hockey in high school, so I’ve always known about it,” says Erin Fox, 24, who lives in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. “But I did buy a hockey ticket to come see the women play the Czech Republic, partly because I like the show so much and I want to see it in action.” The U.S. won, 5-1, with captain Hilary Knight scoring a sweet top-shelf goal in the effort.
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Heated Rivalry, produced for the Canadian-streaming service Crave, is now the most-watched original series on that platform, according to Variety. It’s also now the top-rated non-animated acquired series on HBO Max since it launched in 2020. Globally, it’s been HBO Max’s top show in places like Taiwan, the Philippines, Singapore and Finland; according to Flix Patrol, it’s cracked the top 10 in Bulgaria, Thailand, and Sri Lanka.
Olympic organizers have raced to capitalize on the Heated Rivalry craze. In January, actors Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie, who play the show’s lead protagonists, carried the Olympic flame in Italy. Gary Bettman, commissioner of the NHL—whose players are participating in the Games for the first time since 2014—said he binge-watched the show in one evening, calling it a “wonderful story.” The league also acknowledged that Heated Rivalry has delivered new fans to the sport.
Warning: Spoilers to follow.
In Heated Rivalry, which debuted on HBO Max in late November and has already been renewed for a second season, Williams’ Shane Hollander, superstar player for a fictional Montreal pro franchise, and Storrie’s Ilya Rozanov, who suits up for Boston, engage in a secret affair over the course of a decade. “I think it’s definitely bringing an important conversation to the forefront, which is that a lot of LGBTQ+ athletes aren’t comfortable disclosing that they are queer or gay,” says Christina Singer, an aviation engineer from New Hampshire who is a fan of the series. “And I think that’s something specifically that the NHL really has a lot of work to do [in].”
Williams has said that professional hockey, basketball, and football players have reached out to him, or author Rachel Reid, whose romance novels form the basis of the show, “somewhat anonymously” to share that they are closeted. According to The Athletic, three NHL teams have moved away from a Pride Night model this season. However, the NHL has said that all fans of the show who come to its games will feel a “warm welcome.”
Heated Rivalry’s steamy love scenes between Hollander and Rosanov did surprise some viewers. “It was a little bit crazy for me to watch this show for the first time, because I thought that it would just be a show about ice hockey, nothing more special and spicy,” says Eni Filipi, 19, who hails from Czechia.
The sex scenes, however, also won them over. “We do see a lot of steamy heterosexual stories, so why not see a steamy same-sex partner story?” says Ashley Henderson, an advertising executive from Princeton, N.J. “I thought it was a really refreshing new thing for viewers.” The story attracted fans, too. Many broke into tears when a secondary character, New York player Scott Hunter, came out of the closet by kissing his boyfriend, smoothie shop barista Kip, on TV after winning the show’s version of the Stanley Cup. “As somebody who’s a part of the LGBTQ+ community, it was beautiful to see it on such a wide scale,” says Ann Marie Seybold, a junior at James Madison University studying abroad this semester in Florence. “It was beautiful and brave.”
“Queer audiences are really drawn to it right now,” says Adrienne Katz, a producer who lives in New York City. “’It’s not a ‘kill your darlings’ moment, or anything sad. It’s so many different stories all intersecting. I think it’s for every facet of the community. I’m excited that it’s a show I get to watch with my partner.”
Scott and Kip’s public kiss inspires Rozanov to take up Hollander’s offer for a summer visit to his Canadian cottage. The seclusion was supposed to give them a private setting to advance their relationship, but Hollander’s father inadvertently discovers them together. Hollander then comes out to his parents, with his presumed hated rival, Rozanov, by his side. Hollander’s parents are supportive of their son, another moment that resonated. “We’re moms of three,” says Henderson, who was joined at the U.S.-Czechia game by a pair of childhood friends. “We loved how the mom reacted to the discovery of their relationship. We thought it was very beautiful.”
Read More: ‘Heated Rivalry’ Handles Autism With Love, Care, and a Touch of Awkwardness
When asked to pick whether they preferred Hollander or Rozanov, most leaned towards the Russian character, citing factors like his curly hair and Storrie’s effort to nail down a Russian accent (the actor grew up in Odessa, Tex.). “Proably Ilya,” Enna McBride, 25, an electrical engineer with Ford Motor Company, responds when asked which of the characters she felt more connected to. “I’m chaotic.”
With a second season in the offing, the fever pitch around the show should have some staying power. At least through this month’s Milano Cortina Olympics. “People who want to come along with us for a hockey game, definitely come along,” says Elisha Black, a supporter of the Fife Flyers, a Scottish pro team. “It doesn’t matter if you’ve come from romance books or television shows or whatever, we welcome you with open arms. We’d love to see you at some games. Hockey is for everyone.”
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