Toronto fans go wild for Hudson Williams. And the cast of his new show goes wild for Canada

When Hudson Williams touched down in Toronto on Thursday, King Street turned into a party.

Phone cameras were out. Fans went wild. Posters and selfies galore. Outside the TIFF Lightbox, some dedicated fans had even waited up to 12 hours just to catch a glimpse of the Heated Rivalry star and score a ticket to his premiere.

Williams was in town for a special in-conversation event and the premiere of his next project, Yaga, a sex-fuelled mystery series based on Slavic folklore that starts streaming in October.

Fans of Williams will be well-fed, too. He plays not one, but two, roles in the show.

Shot earlier this year on Vancouver Island, Yaga follows a private investigator called to a small coastal town to search for the missing young heir to a wealthy fishery family, only to uncover a darker web of secrets.

It has a cast packed with Canadian stars, including Noah Reid (Schitt's Creek), Carrie-Anne Moss (The Matrix), Clark Backo (Letterkenny), Sheila McCarthy and even original Anne of Green Gables star Megan Follows.

CBC News was on the red carpet for its world premiere at TIFF and although Williams didn't speak to the media, his co-star was asked if she had any advice for him.

Moss had a pretty simple answer: “He doesn't need it. He's doing great."

Cast members of Yaga walk the red carpet for its Toronto International Film Festival premiere at the TIFF Lightbox theatre on Thursday. (Evan Mitsui/CBC)That set the vibe for the whole night. Yes, there was plenty of Hudson mania, but there was also an overwhelming sense of pride in the Canadian talent behind the show.

Reid, who stars as the private investigator with a fun, flirty change in tone from his role as Patrick on Schitt's Creek, shared his thoughts on the creative environment.

"There's a humility to the Canadian creative spirit that it's not ego-driven," he told CBC News.

"Everybody just wants to like, go in, do their best work, support each other, compete with each other in an effort to get the best product."

Carrie-Anne Moss, left, and Hudson Williams walk the red carpet for Yaga's Toronto International Film Festival premiere at the TIFF Lightbox theatre on Thursday. (Evan Mitsui/CBC)Backo, who stars alongside Reid as a local detective, agreed that the love for Canadian projects is "everything."

"I feel like people are making bets on Canadian shows that maybe they didn’t before," she told CBC News.

Yaga was born out of a play developed by Kat Sandler for Toronto's Tarragon Theatre in 2019.

When asked about being part of a project that's so unapologetically Canadian, Follows said it's "about time."

"Look at the talent, look at the stories, look at how unique and interesting and diverse and complex," she said, referring to the all-Canadian cast of Yaga and the flurry of shows coming out of the country.

"It's not enough to be a service industry. We have to be creating our own pieces across the boards in so many different iterations, right? So that's what's exciting."

Moss rounds out the Canadian cast, starring as a sultry professor in the thick of the mystery. Sandler reached out to her directly, making an offer she said she couldn't refuse.

"Being asked to do something is, first of all, an honour. And you know, you feel bad and you go, 'OK, I'll look at that.' And I love the material. And it was an easy yes."

Yaga premieres on Crave next month.

Griffin Jaeger is a reporter and producer with CBC's entertainment unit. He also formerly hosted and produced content for The National’s digital platforms. You can reach him at griffin.jaeger@cbc.ca