Temperature rising on ‘Heated Rivalry’ season 2
Filming of the second season of Heated Rivalry is underway. A year after the release of the now-iconic first season, producer Brendan Brady tells us how he and his team are dealing with the pressure of following up such a breakout hit.
What a difference a year makes.
In November 2025, Heated Rivalry’s producer Brendan Brady and creator Jacob Tierney released the first episodes of their six-part Crave series, not sure a steamy, queer hockey romance would resonate with viewers.
They knew they’d made a show true to their vision as creators and to the source material, author Rachel Reid’s novel.
They knew their two relatively unknown lead actors — Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams — were wonderful, giving tender and sexy performances as smitten lovers Ilya and Shane, respectively.
And they knew they were about to shake up streaming, whether the show succeeded or tanked.
One year later, we all know how it turned out.
Heated Rivalry not only succeeded but soared. It became Crave’s most-watched original series, and an average of 10.6 million viewers tuned in to each episode on HBO Max. Fans worldwide watched and watched again, with a surge of repeat viewings. On Crave, about 33 percent of viewers rewatched episodes, and some 15 percent have watched an episode more than five times.
Season two expected this spring
Filming of the show’s second season is underway with a projected spring 2027 release.
And expectations are sky-high for this sophomore season, as fans wait to see how Ilya and Shane navigate their clandestine relationship in the high-stakes world of professional hockey.
We caught up with Brady at the Access Canada Summit in Toronto this past September, where the producer and CEO of Heated Rivalry’s production company, Accent Aigu Entertainment, discussed what to expect from season two.
“I don't think we've had a moment to really be able to think too long about [the high expectations],” Brady says, adding they went straight from the “wild ride” that was the first season, straight into development on the second season. “Jacob's point from the get-go was, I can only make the show I want to see, so we're just trying to honour that vision.”
The second season is based on The Long Game, Rachel Reid’s sixth book in her Game Changers series, and picks up 10 years after the events of the series’ second book, Heated Rivalry. Ilya and Shane are still together and closeted. Ilya, struggling with his mental health, wants to come out as a couple but Shane is hesitant, worrying they’ll put their careers at risk.
Tierney joined Reid at BookCon 2026 in New York City to discuss adapting her work. He said that season two showcases the men in a more committed and complicated relationship.
"It really is different," he explained, "and the challenge, from an adaptation standpoint, is you're in much more serious territory. There's still lots of flirting, and there's lots of sex, but it's this kind of danger. This kind of ‘hotel room, adolescent sex’ stuff is largely gone."
Carrying the win streak into season two
With the stakes raised for both the show’s characters and its creators, Brady says it’s crucial that the production team doesn’t change how they go about making the series.
“There are eyes on us that we can't help but feel, but we are trying to really protect the experience that everybody had on season one. A great example is last night we were filming outside the city, and we did a barbecue. And that's very much how our show felt in season one, where it was just really nice vibes, very summer camp element to it. So, we're just trying to hold on to that.”
That feeling of camaraderie is crucial for Brady, but he points out that, as a producer, it is also his job to not prioritize camaraderie over efficiency.
“There's a lot of talk in our business about how it's a family. We're a family. And I really reject that idea. I think it's way better to think of it more like we're a sports team. And as a team, you can trade out players. If somebody's not the right player, it's not because they're a bad person or that you don't love them. It's more that you're not playing with us in the way we need to play. There were some folks that weren't right on the team, and we adjusted them.”
With the success of Heated Rivalry, producers may be looking to Brady for advice. Wrapping up his TIFF panel, the man who’s worked in the industry for 15 years is happy to share a tidbit.
“One of the best pieces of advice I got was, ‘Wait for L.A. to call you,’” he says. “I think a lot of people want to move out of this country when they're young because they think that this system has limitations. And I remember a producer saying to me, wait for L.A. to call you because you've got everything going for you here. The irony is I’ve gotten a lot of calls in the last year, and I just bought a house in Toronto. I'm not moving, I like living here.”
