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Saturday Night Live fans have been left overjoyed by the show’s latest announcement: Connor Storrie, star of the viral romance series Heated Rivalry, will host the show later this month.
Since its release in November, Heated Rivalry has gone from a word-of-mouth sensation in North America and Canada to a global phenomenon, propelling its lead stars, Storrie and Hudson Williams, from obscurity to global celebrities.
Storrie, 25, who plays a closeted gay ice hockey player who strikes up an unlikely romance with his opponent in the Crave/Max program, will make his debut as host on SNL on February 28, alongside British rock band Mumford & Sons, who will join as musical guests.
Fans of Heated Rivalry are seemingly elated by the announcement, with one fan writing under SNL’s Instagram post: “I’m literally going to implode.”
Another fan said: “This is @nbcsnl truly giving the American people what they want and deserve!! This is going to be such an incredible episode, one for the history books!!”
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Connor Storrie has become a global celebrity after the success of the gay hockey romance show ‘Heated Rivalry’ (AFP via Getty Images)
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Connor Storrie will host his first ‘SNL’ installment after finding fame on ‘Heated Rivalry’ (NBC)
“GOD WORKS FAST BUT SNL WORKS FASTER,” joked another commenter, as one person remarked: “Heated Rivalry stars’ fast rise to fame NEEDS TO BE STUDIED THIS IS INCREDIBLE HOW THEY’RE BOTH BOOKED AND BUSY IN JUST TWO MONTHS!!!!!!”
Heated Rivalry, which follows two closeted gay and bisexual professional hockey players, played by Storrie and his co-star Williams, as they grapple with how their romance will affect their careers, has taken the internet by storm and rocked the ice hockey community.
The booking continues a high-profile season for NBC’s long-running sketch series, which has leaned heavily into championing first-time hosts, including Finn Wolfhard, Teyana Taylor and Alexander Skarsgård, with musical guests A$AP Rocky, Geese and Cardi B.
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Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams in ‘Heated Rivalry’ (HBO)
This season has also had notable changes, with breakout star Bowen Yang leaving the show earlier this year, as well as a major cast shakeup that saw Ego Nwodim, Heidi Gardner and Devon Walker all leave the series. New additions to the cast included Ben Marshall, Veronika Slowikowska, Tommy Brennan, Jeremy Culhane and Kam Patterson.
Heated Rivalry’s success has seen Storrie and Williams emerge from the periphery into mainstream success, having been invited to present at awards shows and make red carpet appearances as awards season gets into full swing.
This weekend’s SNL episode saw former cast member Pete Davidson return to the show to channel border czar Tom Homan for a cold open sketch rallying a group of federal immigration agents during a pep talk set in Minneapolis.
Elsewhere, Skarsgård served as host, with his sketches including a fake Winter Olympics promo, a skit about a band of emotional Vikings and an episode of “Immigrant Dad Talk Show” alongside his dad, Stellan.