How ‘Heated Rivalry,’ Crave’s ‘spicy, gay hockey show,’ became a global TV player

TORONTO — Could “Heated Rivalry” be the raciest Canadian TV show ever made? Writer-director Jacob Tierney is willing to drop the mitts on it.

“Our big competition is that episode of ‘Degrassi’ where Spike gets pregnant, so if we can get this right, then I think there’s a big future for us,” the “Letterkenny” co-creator quips.

Based on a novel by Nova Scotia author Rachel Reid, the six-episode Crave series follows two duelling male hockey players who fall into a secret, years-long romance.

Hudson Williams’ clean-cut Canadian forward Shane, and Connor Storrie’s cocky Russian sniper Ilya meet at an international youth tournament and quickly become nemeses. But by the time they reach the major leagues, that tension sparks something more off the ice.

In the first two episodes premiering Friday, their rivalry combusts into a run of steamy, drawn-out, sensuous sex scenes between the two.

Tierney says the series is unabashedly carnal because he wanted to stay true to Reid’s book.

“That’s what the fans of this love about it. That’s what I loved about it, frankly,” he says.

“And I think that as queer people, we do not get to see this very often. We don’t get to see hot sex between consenting adults who want to be there and who are not going to be punished for it later in the story.”

“Heated Rivalry” is part of Reid’s “Game Changers” book series, whose devoted fan base has already been lighting up social media with countless TikTok edits of the show’s trailer and deep-dive Reddit threads dissecting every frame.

The series is also building international momentum: HBO Max has acquired the Crave original for the U.S. and Australia, Sky has secured rights for New Zealand and Movistar Plus+ will debut it in Spain.

Tierney credits Crave’s willingness to take a real swing — and not sanitize the material — for the show’s early traction at home and abroad.

“I don’t think if you water this down that anybody cares about it, if I’m being honest. It got these sales and it’s ignited the fan base because it’s like, ‘Oh my God, what is this?’” he says.

“I don’t think we’re really competing with the other spicy, gay hockey shows. There are no other ones. We live in a time where there’s a million TV shows, and if yours can be different and break through the noise, then there you are.”

The international deals also come courtesy of Crave’s parent company Bell Media taking a majority stake in UK-based distributor Sphere Abacus this year, helping it expand the reach of its content outside of Canada.

Tierney, who’s well versed in hockey storytelling as director and co-writer of Crave hit “Letterkenny” and its spinoff “Shoresy,” says Reid’s novel hooked him right away. So he “slid into her DMs like a creep” and asked if he could option her book.

“To be able to tell a story about queer joy involving my favourite sport is so fun. It feels like such a privilege,” he says.

While “Heated Rivalry” centres on a sport that’s long dealt with homophobia, and it’s about to premiere in the U.S. as queer rights are under attack in the country, Tierney insists “we’re not trying to teach anybody anything here.”

“We’re trying to put something full of love out into the world. Its very existence is an act of political resistance, but beyond that, it’s just a love story,” he says.

“It’s not a TED talk and it’s not an after-school special. It’s just a sweet, horny hockey show.”

Tierney notes he and the actors worked with intimacy coordinator Chala Hunter on the sex scenes, which were “very heavily scripted.”

“We choreographed them like dances,” he says.

“Hopefully, if you treat it like a dance, then you’re freeing up the actors to not think about it when they’re doing it. They don’t have to think about the choice, they know what they’re supposed to be doing, and so then they can just focus on what matters, which is their intimacy and their connection to each other.”

For all the show’s full-throttle eroticism, it’s that tenderness, Tierney stresses, that’s key to making it work — and something he promised Reid he’d prioritize.

“I think like all good smut, it needs intimacy. That’s what gives it impact,” he says.

“These guys meet when they’re super young and then can’t shake each other. Our show takes place over seven or eight years, and by the end of it they realize that they’re in love. It’s a really sweet, romantic journey that’s, yeah, full of a lot of sex.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 27, 2025

Alex Nino Gheciu, The Canadian Press

Crave is a division of Bell Media, which is part of BCE Inc.