Two of the Canadian stars of Crave’s original hit series Heated Rivalry are in Ottawa Thursday, attending an event with Prime Minister Mark Carney and media industry heavyweights.
Actor Hudson Williams, who stars as one of the leads, Ottawa-born Shane Hollander, and Sophie Nelisse, who plays Rose Landry, are joining the internationally acclaimed show’s co-creators Jacob Tierney and Brendan Brady of Accent Aigu Entertainment on stage at a media industry conference.
Prime Time screen and media industry conference in Ottawa Brendan Brady, co-creator of the TV series “Heated Rivalry”, speaks at the Prime Time screen and media industry conference in Ottawa, on Thursday, January 29, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/ Patrick Doyle
The stars’ attendance, as well as the prime minister’s — who kicked off this year garnering his own global attention — was kept under wraps by organizers until the red carpet for the “Prime Time” event got underway.
Carney is expected to walk the red carpet before delivering remarks to the sold-out ballroom crowd. Williams and Nelisse will then take part in a panel discussion about the show’s success and cultural impact, in front of numerous industry leaders, including some of the executives who helped make the book-to-screen Heated Rivalry a reality.
Organized by the Canadian Media Producers Association, and moderated by ETalk senior correspondent Lainey Lui, the discussion has been billed as offering “curated clips and behind-the-scenes insights.”
The six-part drama centres on a pair of pro hockey players, who are rivals inside the rink, but — as character Ilya Rozanov, played by American actor Connor Storrie puts it in the final episode of the first season — secret “lovers” off the ice.
Heated Rivalry Crave Hudson Williams, right, and Connor Storrie are seen in Bell Media image from the Crave series “Heated Rivalry.”
In the two months since its release, the smash series, already renewed for a second season, has catapulted the cast into worldwide fame, seeing them hit red carpets, work the talk show and late-night circuit, and in the case of leads Williams and Storrie, become Winter Olympic torchbearers.
The show, adapted from a series of romance novels by Nova Scotia author Rachel Reid, is a Canadian production to its core, from the cast and the soundtrack to the product placement and shooting locations.
Heated Rivalry’s success — the subject of countless office cooler conversations and entertainment features — has also cast Canadian content in new light.
Sophie Nelisse and Hudson Williams Stars Sophie Nelisse and Hudson Williams are seen in a still from Heated Rivalry. (Crave/Sabrina Lantos)
Bell Media opted to fully finance the show, with the exception of a more-than $3-million contribution from the Canadian Media Fund. Senior leaders with the company have spoken in recent media interviews about the decision allowing showrunners to maintain creative control.
When the show dropped in late November, it became Crave’s number one original series debut on record in the first seven-day streams. Heated Rivalry has also been picked up by streamers worldwide, and is now heralded as the most-watched original series in the streamer’s history, with audiences and critics heaping praise on the production’s portrayal of both hockey culture and queer joy.
CTV News, Crave and CP24 are owned by Bell Media, which is a division of BCE.