When a show leans as hard into intimacy as Heated Rivalry, there’s an inevitable moment when the conversation stops being about chemistry, choreography, or HBO’s comfort level and starts being about moms. For Connor Storrie, who stars opposite Hudson Williams in the book-to-screen adaptation of the hit queer sports romance novel series, that moment arrived as soon as it became clear just how explicit the series was willing to be. The hockey drama doesn’t just flirt with steam; it commits. And, while fans may be celebrating that fact online, family members tend to process it a little differently.
That reality came up during a recent interview with Variety, where Storrie spoke candidly about navigating the show’s sex-heavy reputation and its sudden popularity as well as what it’s like knowing parents are part of the audience, too — even if they’re watching with strategic blinders on. The series, adapted from Rachel Reid’s novel and now a certified hit and immediate watch for HBO Max subscription holders, has turned its leads into overnight internet fixtures. Still, the most grounded reactions are coming from home. Storrie explained:
My mom has watched it. I was like, ‘There’s a lot of sex. We got picked up by HBO.’ You know how sexy something is if it’s on HBO. She was like, ‘Oh, OK. How do you feel about that?’ And I was like, ‘I feel good. How do you feel about that?’ She’s like, ‘If you feel good, I feel good.’ Obviously, she can’t watch the sex scenes. She was like, ‘I can’t watch the sex scenes yet,’ and I was like, ‘You don’t ever have to watch the sex scenes, mom. I don’t need you to watch that.’
It’s a refreshingly mature exchange, one that puts agency where it belongs. Storrie isn’t embarrassed by the work, and his mom isn’t asking him to apologize for it. There’s simply an understanding that some parts of the show are not required viewing at family gatherings.
That same dynamic carried over to his co-star’s family, only this time, the awkwardness played out in real time. At the show’s premiere, Storrie checked in with Hudson Williams’ mom to see how she handled watching the series on the big screen. He added:
Hudson’s mom, too. We were at the premiere, and I was like, ‘So, what did you think seeing it on the big screen?’ And she was like, ‘Oh, I had to cover my eyes for most of it,’ and I’m like, ‘Yeah, that makes sense.’ That must be weird, huh?
Weird is an understatement, sure, but also kind of inevitable. The producers of Heated Rivalry aren’t coy about what they’re doing, and the show doesn’t sanitize desire to make it more palatable. That’s part of why the show has resonated so strongly, especially with audiences who rarely see this kind of intimacy treated as central rather than sensational.
For Storrie, the key difference is perspective. While viewers react to the spice playing out on screen, he remembers the hours of choreography and coordination that the workday really entails to bring the heat to the moment.
The moms’ reactions feel pretty on-brand for material like this. They’re supportive, they’re proud and they’re also totally fine drawing a line at watching everything. For a show that leans into honesty and emotional exposure, a person could argue that might be the healthiest balance possible.
Heated Rivalry drops new episodes every Friday at 12 a.m. ET (Thursday at 9 p.m. PT) through December amid the 2025 TV schedule, with the season finale arriving on December 26.
