From Queer-Baiting to Neurodivergence: ‘Heated Rivalry’s Author Tackles Fan Theories and Controversy

Rachel Reid didn’t intend for anybody to put in writing a dissertation about her sexy little homosexual hockey collection.

Then once more, the Nova Scotia creator behind the Game Changers collection may by no means have anticipated the extent of fanfare that’s accompanied the tv adaptation of her books: Heated Rivalry.

The present, commissioned by Canada’s Crave and distributed by HBO Max within the US, debuted in late November and shortly grew to become an enormous hit. It’s the primary Crave unique collection of all time, and it additionally climbed to number one on HBO Max. A second season has already been greenlit.

In case you’re not watching it but, somebody who’s. (Full disclosure: I threw a Heated Rivalry–themed vacation social gathering final week, which simply meant taking part in it on mute in my house for the vibes.) From Reddit to BookTok, the present and its supply materials have additionally sparked quite a lot of discourse, starting from hypothesis about lead character Shane’s neurodivergence, commentaries about race in hockey, and accusations that Reid favors mischievous Russian Ilya over Shane.

“I did not count on this ebook to be analyzed like The Nice Gatsby after I wrote it. It’s actually only a hockey romance,” Reid, now a New York Occasions bestselling creator, tells me over Zoom, laughing. Nonetheless, she’s flattered on the time individuals have spent theorizing. “I am impressed with among the issues that individuals have actually dug into. I really feel like a few of them make me sound lots smarter than I’m.”

The present additionally sparked criticism from I Love LA star Jordan Firstman, who informed Vulture that the intimacy depicted on the present is “not how homosexual individuals fuck.” He went on to say that lead actors Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie ought to out themselves if they’re homosexual. The actors, who Williams described as “greatest associates,” have been posting flirty movies with one another, and even have matching “intercourse sells” tattoos, however neither has disclosed his sexual orientation. “A homosexual man would say it,” Firstman informed Vulture. “I don’t respect you since you care an excessive amount of about your profession and what’s going to occur if individuals suppose you’re homosexual.”

The feedback prompted fellow Heated Rivalry actor François Arnaud to clap again on Instagram, commenting “Ought to the intercourse that closeted hockey gamers have appear like the intercourse that sceney LA homosexual guys have?” (Firstman has since apologized and the spat appears to have blown over.)

Right here’s what Reid needed to say about all of the discourse surrounding everybody’s favourite hockey smut and why so many ladies are obsessive about the style.