NEED TO KNOW
\nHeated Rivalry actor Fran\u00e7ois Arnaud revealed that there’s an error in the timeline involving his character, Scott, and his romance with Kip (Robbie G.K.)He revealed that editors had to make a cut in Scott’s speech in episode six after catching the mistakeSeason 1 of the hit LGBTQ+ Canadian hockey show is adapted from Rachel Reid’s novel and debuted on HBO Max in November 2025<\/p>\n
Fran\u00e7ois Arnaud<\/a> revealed how the production team on Heated Rivalry’s had to make a last-minute change made to final cut of the season 1 finale in the editing room.\n<\/p>\n The actor, 40, opened up about playing Scott Hunter in the hit LGBTQ+ hockey drama in a preview from his interview on SiriusXM\u2019s Smith Sisters Live<\/a>. The show is adapted from Rachel Reid’s novel<\/a> of the same name, and Arnaud noted that while there weren\u2019t many differences from page to screen, there was one involving his character\u2019s relationship with Kip (Robbie G.K.) that resulted in a continuity error caught after filming was completed.\n<\/p>\n \u201cDo you think we’ll get any intel on what happened between Scott and Kip between those years of, \u2018I can’t do this\u2019 and the kiss on the ice?\u201d co-host Mariah Smith asked, referring to the gap being just months in the book but several years in the series.\n<\/p>\n \u201cSo that’s an interesting thing, and I think I’ve already spoiled that before, I’ll just say it again, even though [creator] Jacob [Tierney] will probably, you know, give me a slap on the wrist,\u201d Arnaud joked. \u201cIt’s because in the book, and also in the way that we shot it, there was a f— up in the timeline.\u201d\n<\/p>\n Heated Rivalry follows the steamy love connection between hockey stars Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams<\/a>) and Ilya Rozanov (Connor Storrie<\/a>). However, Scott and Kip\u2019s romance \u2014 which was told first in Reid\u2019s Game Changers series and paves the way for the romance between Shane and Ilya \u2014 is portrayed in only a few time-jump scenes throughout the show.\n<\/p>\n \u201cA lot of it was really well conceived, but the juxtaposition of the two story lines, they didn’t really know how they were going to cut from one to the other,\u201d Arnaud continued. \u201cAnd so, we shot it thinking it was six months between [Kip\u2019s] birthday and the cup, and now it’s three years.\u201d\n<\/p>\n \u201cEpisode six, the speech where I win the MLH MVP award, there was a line, and they locked the cut, so it was definitely on my face where I say, \u201cFear is a powerful thing, but this year I found the one thing that is more powerful,\u2019 \u201d he recalled of the transgression in the script.\n<\/p>\n \u201cSo it was \u2018this year\u2019 I found the thing that is more powerful, but it couldn’t be this year. So, we had to change it. Like I think the ADR (automatic dialogue replacement) makes it like, \u2018But now I found that.\u2019 But it cuts. It cuts. I watched it. I watched it and it works,\u201d he continued.\n<\/p>\n (L to R) Fran\u00e7ois Arnaud as Scott Hunter and Robbie G.K. as Kip Grady in ‘Heated Rivalry’.<\/p>\n Sabrina Lantos\/HBO Max<\/p>\n Heated Rivalry made waves when it debuted on HBO Max in November 2025. It quickly became the platform\u2019s top-rated non-animated acquired series and a top-five scripted debut of 2025, per Variety<\/a>.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n In December, it was renewed for season 2<\/a>, which is expected to draw from Reid\u2019s sixth Game Changers novel, The Long Game. Set nearly 10 years later, The Long Game finds Shane and Ilya still guarding their relationship as they weigh the risks of going public \u2014 and what that choice would mean for their futures on and off the ice.\n<\/p>\n Never miss a story \u2014 sign up for\u00a0PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter<\/a>\u00a0to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer\u200b\u200b, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.\n<\/p>\n Fran\u00e7ois\u2019 full interview with SiriusXM\u2019s Smith Sisters Live<\/a> airs Tuesday, Jan. 20th on. Smith Sisters Live airs Monday through Friday at 9 a.m. ET\/PT on Radio Andy (Ch. 102), and anytime on the SiriusXM app.\n<\/p>\n