Heated Rivalry season 2: Everything we know so far

As soon as an official announcement was shared to confirm that Heated Rivalry season 2 had been greenlit, fans of the Crave/HBO Max series began to speculate which actors, characters, and gay storylines are bound to return in the new season. Overall, the fandom is having passionate discussions about the future of lovebirds Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams) and Ilya Rozanov (Connor Storrie), which other characters within Rachel Reid's Game Changers series of novels could get a "B plot" treatment similar to season 1's journey between Scott Hunter (François Arnaud) and Kip Grady (Robbie G.K.), and which tricks showrunner Jacob Tierney has up his sleeve to take this beloved hockey series to the next level.

So, without further ado, here's everything we know about Heated Rivalry season 2 so far — to "The Cottage," and beyond!

Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams signed contracts to do three seasons of Heated Rivalry.

Storrie and Williams revealed in their GQ Hype feature story that they've signed on to do three seasons of Heated Rivalry upon being cast on the show.

"Both actors signed on for three seasons of Heated Rivalry; Crave has already greenlit season two," Mickey Rapkin wrote for GQ Hype. "Worth noting: The minimum paycheck for a series regular role on Canadian TV could be as little as $6,792 a week."

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Yet, these contracts aren't always followed in the way that fans might expect them to be like. If the first season of Heated Rivalry had completely bombed, for instance, there would be no incentive for any studio to honor contracts tied to a show that had already flopped. In other words, no network or streaming service renews a show for more seasons just because the actors in it have signed on to do more seasons.

It's also worth noting that Storrie and Williams could very well do a third season of Heated Rivalry that isn't necessarily focused on them. A good example is Bridgerton, on Netflix, which brings back characters who have already led their own seasons and are now just recurring cast members. Namely, Phoebe Dynevor (who led season 1 as Daphne Bridgerton) and Jonathan Bailey (who led season 2 as Lord Anthony Bridgerton) have both returned in subsequent seasons despite the focus no longer being on them.

The two lead actors also knew Heated Rivalry season 2 was officially happening for a long time.

Tierney revealed that both Hudson Williams (Shane Hollander) and Connor Storrie (Ilya Rozanov) knew Heated Rivalry season 2 had been officially greenlit a long time before the news was announced in the press.

"'Cause like...we knew," Tierney told Entertainment Weekly, adding that viewership for episodes 1 and 2 of the Heated Rivalry TV show — and its subsequent placement as the No. 1 most popular show on Crave (Canada) and on HBO Max (U.S.) had already been impressive enough for the series to get renewed.

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Tierney recalled telling told Storrie about the season 2 renewal as early as during the premiere event for Heated Rivalry season 1. Unsurprisingly, the actor was "skeptical" upon hearing it given how early in the process that was.

"Until the pen is on paper, buddy. Until the quill is on the will," Storrie remarked about his hesitation.

Nick Romano of EW wrote that it was only "two days before the official announcement on Dec. 12 when Tierney & co. gathered up the two stars over Zoom and recorded their reaction to the news."

As queer people grapple with the relentless cancelation of so many LGBTQ+ shows after just one season, that is yet another great achievement for the series, its actors, its crew, and queer content overall.

What will Heated Rivalry season 2 be about?

In a promo video shared by HBO Max, Storrie and Williams were seen opening up a package and pulling out a hockey puck that read, "Heated Rivalry season 2." Without missing a beat, Williams described the new season as "hotter, wetter, longer." But the actual tea that fans were curious about came from Storrie.

The actor, who plays Ilya Rozanov on the show, confirmed that Heated Rivalry season 2 will follow the plot of Rachel Reid's The Long Game — the sixth and final book in the Game Changers literary franchise that serves as a direct sequel to Shane and Ilya's love story.

Readers of The Long Game are reunited with Ilya and Shane a little over 10 years after the start of Reid's Heated Rivalry novel (the second book in this franchise). Fortunately, these two hockey players are still together. Unfortunately, they're still closeted, and have now been keeping this relationship a secret for an estimated 11 years, which has obviously taken a toll on them.

"Start reading The Long Game if you want to spoil it for yourself," Storrie said in the video.

Which storylines from The Long Game will be on Heated Rivalry season 2?

When asked about which storylines of Reid's The Long Game novel the actor is excited to explore, Storrie had some resistance to reveal his hopes and expectations.

"I'm interested to play at the dynamic that develops in The Long Game, which is, now that we've established we're together and we're choosing this, what does that look like, to consistently choose through new obstacles, new self-realizations?" Storrie told EW. "We're in the real leagues now, and it's cool to watch these people that have been in this heightened reality for so long. The other shoe drops that deepens the love, but that also tests some of their personal limits."

Jacob Tierney appeared to suggest that Heated Rivalry spinoffs are being discussed beyond season 2. 

Despite all the secrecy surrounding season 2, Tierney firmly declared that "Heated Rivalry will always be centered around Shane and Ilya, this show," he told Deadline.

The showrunner added, "But we have a whole universe here, and so there's loads of other things that we're thinking about, and that we're gonna explore, and that we're gonna start to take more seriously now that we know that there's an audience for it. And that's pretty exciting, so I'm looking forward to really digging into this world."

Studio executives want to grow the Heated Rivalry TV franchise as much as possible.

One of the most insightful stories concerning the future of Heated Rivalry as a potential franchise came from two top executives at Crave's parent company, Bell Media: Sean Cohan (President of Bell Media) and Justin Stockman (Vice President of Content Development & Programming).

When asked how many seasons and/or spinoffs they anticipated following the success of Heated Rivalry season 1, Stockman candidly stated that they were interested in doing as many as possible — though the executives did seem to be considerate of the creative limitations and/or boundaries within Rachel Reid's book series and Jacob Tierney's outline for the TV show adaptation.

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"We have had a lot of discussion with Jacob and [his producing partner] Brendan Brady about what the vision is," Stockman told The Ankler. "We know we want more. What shape that takes — how many seasons can we get out of the Shane and Ilya story versus what else could be sprinkled in or is that this series or is that another series — we haven't really answered yet. It's an ongoing conversation of how to map it out right now."

Stockman concluded, "The more the better, but we want every episode to be as good as the ones that have been created so far."

Hudson Williams teases the Heated Rivalry season 2 filming schedule.

Hudson Williams, who plays Shane Hollander on Heated Rivalry, has come off as a pretty chaotic and unserious celebrity that fans have fallen in love with.

When asked about filming dates for Heated Rivalry season 2, Williams told Variety, "Someone has told me July or August, but I really don't know." The actor then shared another detail concerning his fitness leading up to the second season. "I'm gaining 10 pounds for season 2," he remarked. "10 lean pounds."

Generally speaking, Williams has been a pretty reliable narrator whenever he's asked serious questions about the actual production of the series. On the other hand, it can difficult to track when the actor is joking or actually disclosing real information in certain interviews.

(Williams's answer to Variety did not sound like a joke, but it's something worth being mindful of.)

Heated Rivalry season 2 streaming will remain on HBO Max for U.S. audiences.

Casey Bloys, CEO and content chairman of HBO and HBO Max, confirmed that Heated Rivalry season 2 streaming will remain on HBO Max for U.S. audiences, as noted in the GQ Hype feature with Williams and Storrie.

The Crave original series, produced entirely as a Canadian production, is HBO Max's "top-rated live-action acquisition ever," Bloys told the publication. Another interesting remark snuck into the GQ Hype story is that "HBO is not creatively involved with the series" even as it is renewed for a second season.

Bell Media/Crave will continue to run the Heated Rivalry franchise in season 2 without having to share any creative decisions with international distribution partners — even one as big as HBO Max in the U.S. market.

When is Heated Rivalry season 2 being released?

Despite his obvious excitement about Heated Rivalry season 1 being such a massive success, showrunner Jacob Tierney is setting conservative estimates for the timeline to produce, film, and release the now-confirmed second season of the show.

"It can't be same time next year, because this time last year I'd written five of these, and this time this year I've written zero of them," Tierney told Variety in an interview. "So it's going to be a little bit later, but it's still going to be soon."

Given that the first season premiered in late November (and mostly aired in December 2025), the showrunner is indeed suggesting that Heated Rivalry season 2 will only come out in early 2027. "We understand that everybody's goal is to not do two years between seasons," Tierney noted.

RELATED: Scott Hunter and Kip Grady's Heated Rivalry relationship timeline

Tierney shared an even more specific timeline for Heated Rivalry season 2 in a separate interview with Entertainment Weekly.

"It will not be same time next year, but it'll be pretty soon after that. It's not gonna be two years," the writer/director noted. "It's not even gonna be 18 months, I don't think. So we're gonna go as fast as we can, while ensuring that we're doing as good a job as we possibly can."

Tierney adamantly rejected the idea that season 2 would be "fast tracked" due to the success of season 1. No, he insisted. It won't be. "There's only so fast a track to go down when the show is written and directed by one person. I haven't started writing yet," the Heated Rivalry showrunner said. "I'm going to. We are aware. We want to get the season out as soon as we can, as well, while also making sure that we give people a good second season."

The showrunner concluded, "And, at the same time, I don't want to put out a rushed shitty second season just because the show is very popular. But we're very aware that our creative partners are enthusiastic and don't want to wait too long. We're getting back to work!"

Heated Rivalry is streaming on HBO Max.