HBO Max and Canada’s Crave are heading back to the rink.
The two streamers have picked up the hockey romance Heated Rivalry for a second season. The renewal comes four episodes into the show’s six-episode season and on the heels/skate blades of the show becoming a word-of-mouth breakout on both sides of the border.
HBO Max will continue to have rights to the series in the United States and Australia as part of a deal with Sphere Abacus, which distributes the show, while adding territories in Asia, Latin America and parts of Europe (though not the U.K., Ireland, Spain or Turkey). Crave, which commissioned the show, will continue to stream it in Canada.
Heated Rivalry, based on a novel by Rachel Reid, follows a romance over several years between hockey players Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams) and Ilya Rozanov (Connor Storrie), who play for rival teams but can’t deny their attraction to one another. Crave says the show, created by Jacob Tierney (Letterkenny), is its biggest original series launch to date.
“Heated Rivalry represents the very best of what Canadian creators can deliver: rich characters, compelling drama, and a world audiences want to live in,” said Justin Stockman, vp content and programming at Bell Media, which owns Crave. “The response has been extraordinary, and seeing the series now traveling internationally is an incredible milestone.”
Added Tierney and executive producer Brendan Brady, “Watching our show become an international phenomenon has been extraordinary. We’re profoundly grateful to everyone that has been on this journey with us. Being renewed for a second season so early is a true honour, and we can’t wait to bring you even more of what you love.”
Anticipation for the series had been building in Canada for some time, thanks in part to a sizable social media following for Reid’s book (and others in her Game Changers series). HBO Max acquired U.S. streaming rights to the show less than two weeks before it premiered.
“We wanted to live up to the expectations for the fans,” Brady told The Hollywood Reporter before the show debuted. “The fans’ involvement in this experience has very much led to these amazing opportunities. It just feels like we’ve had a really great time getting to help bring this [show] to a community that wants it.”
The cast also includes Francois Arnaud, Robbie G.K., Christina Change, Dylan Walsh, Sophie Nélisse and Ksenia Daniela Kharlamova.
Accent Aigu Entertainment produces Heated Rivalry in association with Crave, with the participation of the Canada Media Fund and the Bell Fund. Tierney and Brady executive produce the series; Lori Fischburg produces, and Reid is a consulting producer.
