If you’re anything like me, every screen in your house for the better part of a month has been playing either Heated Rivalry episodes or Heated Rivalry fan edits, both of which are somehow wholesome and horny in equal measure.

Given how invested we are in the story of Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams) and Ilya Rozanov (Connor Storrie), it’s only natural to wonder about the off-screen love lives of those who play them.

Add in the fact that Heated Rivalry is a steamy rom-com and you’ve got all morsels necessary for fans to pore over details of Hudson and Connor’s dating histories.

So strap in and pick up that hockey puck I know for a fact you have lying around somewhere, because we’re digging into who the stars of Heated Rivalry are dating IRL.

Is Hudson Williams single?

By all accounts, Hudson — who portrays Montreal Metros hockey star Shane — is single, though his love life has been the subject of much chatter since Heated Rivalry’s premiere.

Hudson has kept his relationship status, and indeed his sexuality, out of the public eye, except for a few comments he’s made in recent weeks.

Earlier this month, Hudson responded to speculation about his sexual orientation by reiterating the boundaries he has with fans and the media.

“I think there’s never a question for me, when I would dream of becoming in the public eye, that I would want just a level of privacy,” Hudson told Deadline. In the same interview, the actor emphasised the importance of “queer people telling queer stories”.

The topic of Hudson’s love life reared its head again earlier this week, when a cohost on gossip blogger Deuxmoi’s Deux U podcast alleged that he has a “secret girlfriend” — an accusation that the actor did not take kindly to.

“You know what,” Hudson reportedly wrote under an Instagram clip of the podcast moment that has since been deleted, “I’ve grown quite unfond of you Deuxmoi.”

So as it stands, very little is known about Hudson’s relationship status (and that’s by design), but that hasn’t stopped folks speculating about who might be the lucky person to bag Shane Hollander himself.

Is Connor Storrie single?

The same goes for Connor, the actor behind steely-faced yet facetious Boston Raiders player Ilya. Much like Hudson, Connor has never confirmed either his relationship status or his sexuality, and has played coy when asked of such details in the past.

“I feel honoured to be able to bring someone to life that so many people feel seen, understood, and represented by,” Connor said in an interview with Vulture earlier this month. “I think that transcends whoever I’m sleeping with in my real life.”

The rumours about the sexualities of the Heated Rivalry cast almost engulfed the show

The lead stars remaining tight-lipped about their love lives has done little to quiet all the speculation. One such speculator was Jordan Firstman, the star of the fellow HBO series I Love LA. 

Earlier this month, Jordan caught flak for his critiques about Heated Rivalry in an interview with Vulture, including his comments that the show is about “two straight hockey players pretending to be gay and fucking”.

When the interviewer clarified that neither star has confirmed their sexuality, Jordan declared that “they should”.

“I am one of those bitches who says, ‘Then say it.’ A gay guy would say it. I don’t respect you because you care too much about your career and what’s going to happen if people think you’re gay,” Jordan said.

It all culminated in François Arnaud — who plays Scott Hunter in Heated Rivalry — slamming Jordan’s comments, before HBO did what seemed like damage control by having him and Hudson do a promotional event in LA earlier this month.

One person who’s not here for such chatter is Heated Rivalry’s director Jacob Tierney, who attempted to put the kibbosh on speculation about his castmates’ sexualities. “I don’t think there’s any reason to get into that stuff,” he told Xtra Magazine.

“You can’t ask questions like that when you’re casting, right? It’s actually against the law. So what you have to gauge is somebody’s enthusiasm and willingness to do the work… and they fucking hit it out of the park,” he added.

They are wise words in an era of Hollywood where parasocial fandoms can verge on the obsessive, so here’s hoping we can all just appreciate what Hudson and Connor gave us on screen, and save all the speculation for our fanfics.

Lead image: Instagram