Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie Slice The Ice and Keep a Secret in HEATED RIVALRY

By BILL HARRIS Special to The Lede   Both Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie could literally feel the simmering pressure of HEATED RIVALRY. Premiering Friday, Nov. 28 on Crave, the six-part drama stars Williams as young Canadian hockey star Shane Hollander, and Storrie as young Russian hockey star Ilya Rozanov. The tale begins back in 2008, and while Shane and Ilya are linked in all the obvious hockey ways – competitiveness, ambition, the tradition of Canada vs. Russia – they also feel a romantic and sexual pull toward each other that would have widespread ramifications if it ever became public. For most acting jobs, actors are told to commit emotionally to the role. But in the case of HEATED RIVALRY, which was created by award-winning Canadian writer-director-producer Jacob Tierney (LETTERKENNY, SHORESY), the whole dilemma is that the lead characters feel that they can’t commit emotionally to their feelings in any kind of public way. “I remember I actually turned to Hudson, probably halfway through the shooting, because there was this kind of unease, or there was this sort of tension that I would leave the set with on certain days,” Storrie recalled. “Usually with acting, even if it’s really difficult and emotional circumstantially, it’s usually a cathartic experience, you know? But with this tension, the kind that’s unsaid, not completely vulnerable or in a completely honest place for a long period of time, it did kind of build up some sort of discomfort, because there’s not that expression. So, yeah, I remember being like, ‘damn, I feel kind of weird,’ because there’s no catharsis.” Williams totally agreed. “Yeah, my chest would feel constricted,” he said. “Because you’re constantly sort of closed off. Even Shane’s voice is kind of constricted. His shoulders are rounded. He’s tense. His whole being is so pushed down and stifled that you feel it physically when you leave the set.” Of course, in terms of the actual plot in HEATED RIVALRY, much of the external tension comes from the question of, is anyone going to find out what’s going on between Shane and Ilya, who are hiding in plain sight as two of the highest-profile athletes in the world? “That is kind of the gasoline that makes the hiding and the shame and the secret of it all,” Storrie said. “That’s what raises the stakes, because it’s one thing to confront that with yourself, and look at the person across from you and be vulnerable about those feelings, but it’s another thing to do that publicly when you feel like the stakes are so high.” Williams added, “gasoline feels like a good word. With the amount of cameras and attention and sort of public image that these characters have to put forth, I think, at least for my character, it leads to a constant deer-in-the-headlights thing. He is always harboring this secret, which just drives all the angst.” Another intriguing aspect of HEATED RIVALRY is the usual manner in which Shane and Ilya communicate. Phones back in that era could basically do only two things: you could phone someone, or text someone. “It’s not even just the technology, but how you interacted with the technology was different,” Storrie observed. “Like, now it’s very normal to be in a dressing room where everyone is on their phones, because there’s so much going on. But back in the day, if you were on your phone, it was literally to be sending a message, and that was pretty much it.” Which meant that anyone, including Ilya and Shane, would be much more conspicuous when they were using their phones. Teammates would be naturally curious, because it wasn’t something that everyone was doing all the time. “Yes, and that gets called out a lot, too – like, ‘who are you texting?’ ” Storrie said. Williams added, “it’s sort of the perfect time period for when this relationship started in this fictional world, the fact that they had access to those kinds of phones at that time, where you could have instant messaging, but only at that sort of calibre.” Considering HEATED RIVALRY at an icier level, did Williams and Storrie grow up playing hockey? Williams shook his head. “I’m a bad Canadian,” he said. “And I’m not Canadian, so I have no obligation to hockey,” said Storrie, who is American. “I love it now, though. I totally get the hype, and if I’m going to sit down and watch a sport, it’s probably going to be hockey at this point.” “I had different sports in my world when I was growing up,” Williams said. “But I would say hockey is my favourite team sport now as well. It was fun to finally get to loop around back to the sport that was sort of an oversight for me, and get to learn about the culture, and appreciate it. I reached out to some hockey friends to kind of get influenced a little bit more, and learn the key terminology, so I could feel like I had some legitimacy when I actually showed up on set.” The game starts on Friday, in more ways than one.   billharristv@gmail.com @billharris_tv