‘Heated Rivalry’ star Hudson Williams says he struggled to get back in character as Shane Hollander. And then things clicked - Toronto Star

Williams sat down for a TIFF fireside chat at the Royal Alexandra Theatre Thursday before attending the red carpet premiere of “Yaga,” a new Crave murder-mystery series.

Excited “Heated Rivalry” fans snap photos of Hudson Williams outside the Royal Alexandra Theatre.

Hudson Williams told fans he’s still trying to make sense of the whirlwind ride “Heated Rivalry” has taken him on over the past year and the strange problem of being at the centre of a global phenomenon.

The Kamloops, B.C.-raised actor, who plays Shane Hollander on Crave’s hit gay hockey romance, took part in a fireside chat at the Toronto International Film Festival on Thursday where he said he struggled to return to the character for its second season, now in production, partly because the show has taken on a life of its own.

"Heated Rivalry" star Hudson Williams stops for fans on his way to screening at the 2026 Toronto International Film Festival.  

“It’s weird that our memory of playing Season 1 isn’t just our true memory of showing up and doing the scenes — it’s having watched them cut together, it’s fan reactions,” he said during the chat at the Royal Alexandra Theatre.

“Our memory isn’t ours, it’s everyone’s. It has been abstracted and twisted and it has become this weird amalgamation of a memory.”

Williams said returning to the “Heated Rivalry” set wasn't easy. He worried that he was doing an impression of his character, and he says his co-star Connor Storrie felt the same.

“It came back, thankfully,” he added.

During “Making Waves With ... Hudson Williams,” an 80-minute conversation moderated by TIFF programmer Keith Bennie, Williams talked about his upbringing, his creative influences and his career goals. But the conversation repeatedly came back to just how unreal it’s been to suddenly find himself at the centre of the breakout success of Jacob Tierney’s TV series, in which Williams and Storrie play rival hockey stars who become secret lovers.

“I always picture a little rocket ship — a little Tierney rocket ship — that Connor and I just clung on,” he said of experiencing the show’s popularity since it debuted 10 months ago.

“It’s so surreal. It simultaneously feels like three days ago and five years ago.”

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