‘Heated Rivalry’ Producers Drop Hints on Season 2: “This Show Is Not Built on Secrets”

Heated Rivalry producers Jacob Tierney and Brendan Brady say the queer hockey drama’s second season will lean on feeling over plot twists — and that fans already have most of the answers.

The producers behind HBO Max and Crave’s breakout queer romance Heated Rivalry are staying coy on specifics for season two — but not because there’s much left to hide.

“What’s so funny about the level of secrecy is like there’s a book — you can just look at it,” creator, writer and director Jacob Tierney said of the Rachel Reid novels, the Game Changers series, the show is adapted from. “It’ll tell you honestly, 90 percent of what you’d like to know is in that book.” Related Stories Movies BFI London Film Fest Sets 10 Competition Titles, Including Hirokazu Kore-eda, Carol Morley Films Movies Diane Kruger, Tim Roth, Danny Boon Join Netflix Nazi Hunter Drama 'Project K'

Season one of the series drew primarily from Heated Rivalry , Reid’s second Game Changers novel, which introduced the story of Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams) and Ilya Rozanov’s (Connor Storrie), two on-ice rivals who develop a passionate, secret, long-term romantic relationship. Tierney also folded in elements and characters from the series’ first book, which centers on Scott Hunter (played by François Arnaud) and Kip Grady (played by actor Robbie G.K.).

For season two, Tierney has said the show will continue Shane and Ilya’s story, drawing primarily from Reid’s sixth book, The Long Game , which finds the pair now in a committed relationship and learning to build a life together while still hiding their feelings from the public. Season two will also weave in the storylines from book five, Role Model , whose plot runs concurrently with The Long Game ‘s timeline. Role Model focuses on Troy, a professional hockey player who is traded to the Ottawa Centaurs in Reid’s source material, and Harris, the team’s social media manager. It was announced earlier this month that Charlie Gillespie has been cast as Troy, with Justice Smith to play Harris.

Tierney was careful to note that even with two books’ worth of story now in play, the show isn’t built to withhold plot from its audience. “This is not the usual suspects. Like, we’re not trying to hide a villain from you… there are books, read them, and then make two guesses, three guesses, and I bet two of them will be right,” he said. “It’s really this show is not built on secrets. It’s built on feelings and sensation. It’s a very visceral show. It’s very sensual in that way, and it’s all in the execution of it.”

Tierney is sharing writing duties on season two with Mike Goldbach — whose credits include Mayfair Witches and On Becoming a God in Central Florida — as co-writer. “Mike is such a good writer, and he’s been so amazingly helpful to me,” Tierney said, “We’re very happy with where we’re at with the scripts.