Sky Atlantic's latest drama, Heated Rivalry, has sparked conversation, but not necessarily for its plot. The steamy series, starring Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams as rival ice hockey players, has been critiqued for an overabundance of intimate scenes at the expense of character development.
A Romance Built on Secret Encounters
Based on Rachel Reid's Game Changers books, the show follows the clandestine relationship between two professional athletes. Hudson Williams portrays Shane Hollander, the golden boy with a supportive family and a manager mother. Opposite him is Connor Storrie as Ilya Rozanov, a product of a brutal Russian upbringing with a demanding father.
Their dynamic is classic opposites attract: bitter rivals on the ice who are irresistibly drawn together off it. The series charts their secret liaisons across years, moving from fancy hotel rooms to luxury apartments as their careers and wealth grow.
Intimacy Overshadows Investment
While the show's intimacy coordinator, Chala Hunter, has undoubtedly earned her fee, the relentless focus on sex scenes has been called tedious by some reviewers. The constant shots of "muscular bottoms" and perfectly framed encounters, designed for international market sales, reportedly leave little room for emotional depth.
The banter between the leads—largely consisting of Ilya calling Shane "boring" and Shane retorting "you're an asshole"—does little to flesh out their personalities. Even the hockey scenes, kept to a minimum, fail to captivate, leaving viewers yearning for more substance.
A Glimmer of Depth in Supporting Story
Salvation arrives in episode three with the introduction of a second queer relationship. Shane's teammate, Scott Hunter (François Arnaud), begins a life-enhancing romance with a man named Kip (Robbie GK). This subplot provides the character development and emotional investment sorely missing from the central pairing, offering the audience something to genuinely connect with.
The second half of the series allows the main characters to mature slightly, with sex evolving into love and intimacy. However, the question remains whether this payoff is sufficient reward for enduring the repetitive first few hours.
Despite the criticism, Heated Rivalry has been a word-of-mouth hit since its release last year. Director Jacob Tierney has referred to its "baked-in" audience as "wine moms," suggesting a dedicated viewership for this explicit romance genre.
The show has been praised for its portrayal of young men in love and in intimate situations on mainstream television. Yet, it has also faced comparisons to more realistic depictions, like Russell T Davies' Queer as Folk. The core critique is that once the novelty of the explicit content fades, there is insufficient narrative weight to support a truly rewarding story.
Heated Rivalry is available on Sky Atlantic and Now in the UK, and on HBO Max in Australia.
