{"id":222890,"date":"2026-01-08T08:09:12","date_gmt":"2026-01-08T08:09:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/222890\/"},"modified":"2026-01-08T08:09:12","modified_gmt":"2026-01-08T08:09:12","slug":"heated-rivalry-star-connor-storrie-went-as-miley-cyrus-for-halloween","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/222890\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Heated Rivalry’ Star Connor Storrie Went as Miley Cyrus for Halloween"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tNow that Miley Cyrus has said she would love to do music for the second season of \u201cHeated Rivalry,\u201d<\/a> one of the show\u2019s stars, Connor Storrie<\/a>, has a confession to make.<\/p>\n

\n\tStorrie, who plays Russian hockey player Ilya in the queer romance series, tells me he was only 13 when he dressed as Cyrus for Halloween.<\/p>\n

\n\tAs Hannah Montana?<\/p>\n

\n\tNope, it was Cyrus from her very controversial MTV VMAs performance with Robin Thicke in 2013. \u201cNot to expose myself a little bit, but\u2026it was a big cultural moment at the time,\u201d Storrie told me Wednesday morning after he and \u201cAbbott Elementary\u201d star Janelle James announced this year\u2019s SAG\/Actor Awards<\/a> nominations in Los Angeles. \u201cMe and my best friend \u2014 I was Miley Cyrus for Halloween and he was Robin Thicke.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cI was in middle school,\u201d he continued. \u201cI think those photos don\u2019t exist anymore. I want to plant the seed for people to try to find them, but I don\u2019t think they will.\u201d (Turns out they do. Fans were quick to find one<\/a> after Variety posted a video of my interview on social media.)<\/p>\n

\n\tCyrus was blasted for her appearance at the VMAs for not only twerking on Thicke during their set, but she was also accused of cultural appropriation.<\/p>\n

\n\tUnlike Storrie\u2019s YouTube videos from around that time that have become quite popular these days, Storrie doesn\u2019t believe there\u2019s any footage of him as Cyrus. As James said, \u201cThat\u2019s probably a good thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tLooking into the camera, Storrie said, \u201cSo, Miley Cyrus, know that I was you at the MTV Movie Awards.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tIt\u2019s been a meteoric rise for Storrie and his \u201cHeated R<\/a>ivalry\u201d co-star Hudson Williams ever since HBO Max debuted the first two episodes of the show over Thanksgiving weekend. HBO Max acquired the series from Canadian streamer Crave.<\/p>\n

\n\tMemes and gifs of the show\u2019s most explicit sex scenes and other moments from the episodes quickly went viral.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn mid-December, Storrie told me he decided to do his self-tape audition shirtless<\/a>. \u201cI was like, \u2018If we\u2019re doing a show that heavily involves sex,\u2019\u201d he said. \u201cSo I took off my shirt, even though it didn\u2019t say that. I had my shirt off the entire time because I was like, \u2018If we\u2019re doing that, you all have to see what these people look like naked.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tStorrie has signed with mega talent agency CAA. He and Hudson will present at the Golden Globes on Sunday. Storrie will make his late-night talk show debut on\u00a0\u201cLate Night with Seth Meyers\u00a0on Jan. 12.<\/p>\n

\n\tSadly, because \u201cHeated Rivalry<\/a>\u201d is a fully Canadian-financed production, it\u2019s ineligible for Emmys and Actor Awards.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cDo I think it would be cool to get that recognition for the show?\u201d Storrie asked. \u201cYeah, 100%. Do I think the show has a level of quality that I think will get recognized? 100%. But also, awards are a cherry on top of the cake, which is just being able to do what you want. We all make things to be seen, so when you get reinforcement that things are being watched, that\u2019s kind of all you need, especially with something like this that had little promise going into it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tJames said she watched \u201cHeated Rivalry\u201d about three weeks ago when her assistant recommended it. \u201cWhat I\u2019m thinking about his excellent Russian accent that he does,\u201d she said when I alluded to his risqu\u00e9 sex scenes. \u201cI\u2019m thinking about his characterization. I\u2019m thinking that he is adorable, and he looks like a leading man, and I\u2019m excited to see where he goes next.<\/p>\n

\n\tAdditional reporting by Kennedy French.<\/p>\n

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