Hudson Williams and ‘Heated Rivalry’ dominate Canadian Screen Awards

'I'm honoured to be Canadian, and this is fantastic,' breakout star said during broadcast

Get the latest from Mark Daniell straight to your inbox

Published Jun 01, 2026  •  Last updated 13 minutes ago  •  3 minute read

Hudson Williams shows off his best actor prize at the 2026 Canadian Screen Awards. Photo by George Pimentel Photography /Canadian Screen Awards

See more Toronto Sun on Google — save as a Preferred Source

Article content

Crave’s breakout hockey drama Heated Rivalry was the big winner at Sunday night’s Canadian Screen Awards, taking home most of the top prizes.

Article content

Article content

The international streaming hit set a new record when it won 16 awards in total, including best drama and best actor for B.C.’s Hudson Williams.

Based on Rachel Reid’s bestselling book series, Heated Rivalry follows a love affair between two players, Shane Hollander (Williams) and Ilya Rozanov (Storrie), on rival teams.

Heated Rivalry character Shane Hollander, played by Hudson Williams, wearing his iconic Canada fleece. Crave TV

Taking to the stage to accept his statuette, Williams, 25, thanked his American-born Heated Rivalry co-star Connor Storrie, whom he called an “honorary Canadian.”

“I’m honoured to be Canadian, and this is fantastic,” Williams said. “I want to thank some people, the cast and crew of Heated Rivalry, thank you for being such a warm space. Crave, thank you for putting money into our beautiful, straightforward hockey show. HBO, thank you for getting some more eyes on it. Rachel Reid, thank you for creating this universe. My papas, Brendan Brady, Jacob Tierney, thank you. My mom and dad for always believing in me and never letting this dream become something I shouldn’t believe in. My partner Katelyn (Larson), … love you. Thank you so much for always keeping me stable, because sometimes I’m not.”

Article content

Article content

Williams also said that he would split the award with Storrie if he was able to.

“If I could cut this award down the middle, I would, because if these gay yearning little bottom eyes didn’t have a big sexy Russian to feast upon, my performance wouldn’t be as good,” he said. “So, to the honorary Canadian, Connor Storrie, I share this award with you.”

Speaking to reporters afterwards, Williams praised the night’s other most-nominated show, North of North.

“It shows that we don’t have to shoot somewhere else for Canada. We can shoot Canada for Canada, and be proud of it, and it spreads and it permeates,” he said. “It can resonate across all borders and everyone can appreciate it and love it.”

Season 2 of Heated Rivalry excites Williams

Creator Jacob Tierney is putting the finishing touches on Season 2’s episodes, with filming tentatively scheduled to begin this summer in Toronto and Montreal.

Backstage, Tierney said the show’s worldwide success surprised him. “It’s bananas,” he said. “This was not obvious at any step of the way.”

Article content

The second season will adapt Reid’s The Long Game, the only other book in her hockey series that follows Ilya and Shane.

“I kind of just want to honour the scripts that Jacob will write,” Williams told eTalk on the red carpet. “I’ve never gotten a chance to revisit a character before. That’s something that really excites me and Connor. I think it’s going to be fun. Summer camp vibe is definitely how that set feels. I think I’m excited to swim in that and (see) where the relationship grows. It feels like something I can pick up and then evolve. That’s going to be really rewarding.”

The sex featured in Reid’s books and Season 1 will also continue to push the envelope, Tierney said, promising a “similar level of spice.”

“We’re getting the smutty band back together,” he said, according to Yahoo!. “It’s going to be what you want it to be in that regard.”

Season 1 of Heated Rivalry is now streaming on Crave.

[email protected]

Read More

1. 

   'Heated Rivalry' cottage now available to book on Airbnb

2. 

   These are Heated Rivalry star Hudson Williams' favourite Vancouver destinations

3. 

   Heated Rivalry: Why Hudson Williams says the sex is 'just a character'

4. 

   The official Heated Rivalry fleece jacket is finally available for pre-order

Article content