'Heated Rivalry', the hit romantic sports drama, is gearing up for its digital release in India. Here's everything you need to know about the following.
Heated Rivalry, the romantic sports drama, is a global hit series. The TV series that debuted in November 2025 was made on a minimal budget. The drama features Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams as two rival hockey players who fall in love. For the unversed, Heated Rivalry is adapted from a novel by Canadian author, Rachel Reid of the same name. Heated Rivalry is a tale of a forbidden love story, and now it is all set to release in India.
Heated Rivalry revolves around Connor Storrie, who plays the role of a Russian player, 'Ilya Rozanov', and Hudson Williams, who plays the role of a Canadian player, 'Shane Hollander'. The duo rose to fame with this romantic sports drama. Ever since the six-episode series made its debut, cinephiles in India have become curious to know when it will release on the OTT. According to the latest reports, Heated Rivalry is scheduled to release in India on February 20, 2026, and people can stream it on Lionsgate Play.
The six-episode series, Heated Rivalry, focuses on a secret affair between two professional ice hockey players, 'Ilya Rozanov' and 'Shane Hollander'. They are rivals on the ice and have tough fights, but off the ice, the duo shares a secret relationship. However, this secret affair can ruin their respective careers if it comes out in the spotlight.
In a 2025 interview with Toronto Life, director, Jacob Tierney shared how the story of Heated Rivalry was adapted from a novel by Rachel Reid. He mentioned that during the COVID-19 pandemic, he came across Rachel’s books, and that’s when he met the two characters, 'Ilya Rozanov' and 'Shane Hollander'. He was quoted as saying:
"During the pandemic, I stumbled across Rachel Reid’s books, and I devoured them all. I fell hard for Shane and Ilya. This was a story I didn’t know I needed in the most real way – smart, funny, sweeping, and deeply, unapologetically sexy. And what’s more, it was unapologetically gay. I was always looking for queer stories to tell, but Heated Rivalry reminded me of something I almost never saw, a happy ending. No tragic suicide, no terminal illness, no one giving up and pretending to be straight to be able to live only half a life. This book was bursting with unashamed queer joy. And still, I never actually thought I’d adapt it."
In the same interview, director, Jacob Tierney revealed that his series has a happy ending. He shared that when he first spoke to author, Rachel, he told her how serious he was about the novel. He explained why the stories of 'Shane' and 'Ilya' deserve the utmost seriousness. He highlighted that the queer community deserves a real, grounded and aspirational love story. He was quoted as saying:
"So now, here I am with Heated Rivalry as my baby. My passion project. There is nothing I wanted more than to bring this show to life, to introduce this shamelessly funny, glorious, epic, romantic story to the world. When I first spoke to Rachel Reid, I told her I wanted to take this book seriously. Because that’s what it deserves. That’s what Shane and Ilya deserve. And that’s what queer community deserves, a real, grounded, and aspirational love story complete with the kind of happy ending gay people almost never get. Most importantly, you can fall in love, and you can have your happy ending too."
Are you excited to watch the series, Heated Rivalry? Let us know.
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