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Heated Rivalry breakout star Hudson Williams can tick a shared moment with Canada’s Prime Minister off his bucket list.
Williams and Mark Carney met on the red carpet at the Canadian Media Producers Association’s (CMPA) annual Prime Time conference in Ottawa, and things warmed up pretty quickly as they shared in the show’s unexpected global success.
After posing for several pictures (see below), Williams helped Carney put on a white fleece before wrapping his leg around the Prime Minister as photographers took more shots. A CBC news video caught Carney saying, “Do the leg thing,” promoting the Heated Rivalry co-lead to do just that.
At the Prime Time event, Carney also met with Heated Rivalry star Sophie Nélisse and creatos Jacob Tierney and Brendan Brady, along with others such as Sean Cohan, President of Bell Media, whose streamer Crave originally commissioned the ice hockey drama.
Carney late made a surprise address to Prime Time delegates at Prime Time, crediting Tierney and Brady for refusing U.S. execs’ call to tone down the show’s raunchier elements while it was in development stage and before it was homed at Crave.
“What’s the point in that?” he said. “Jacob did the right thing. He did the smart thing. He came home to Canada. He came home to a nation that celebrates what makes us different.”
Carney heaped praised on Tierney and his team, adding: “Congratulations on creating a story that has struck a chord with so many across this country, around the world. Because of you, cottage season will have a whole new meaning this summer.”
Heated Rivalry stars Williams and Connor Storie as a pair of professional ice hockey players whose fierce sporting rivalry masks a secret desire between them, which later develops into a joyful relationship. Having been a late pick-up for HBO Max in the U.S. and several other territories, it has broken out in the public consciousness in a way few shows manage, and made overnight stars of Williams and Storie.
Carney, who revealed he has watched five episodes of the show, praised the series and the lead characters, noting the journey they go on and how they challenge notions of masculinity. “They’re also two young men who are terrified of being their fullest selves, and we live in an increasingly dangerous, divided and intolerant world and the hard-fought rights of the 2SLGBTQ+ community are under threat,” he said.
Heated Rivalry is gearing up for a second season, with Tierney penning more scripts. Season 1 streams on Crave in Canada, HBO Max in the U.S., Europe (excluding UK and Ireland, Spain, and Turkey), Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand, Philippines, Macau, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Latin America, Sky in the UK and Ireland, Movistar Plus+ in Spain, and Neon in New Zealand.
Here are more shots from Prime Time.
English (US) ·