Get a load of this b’ys! It’s hockey and it’s gay.
Jacob Tierney has been a driving force in the Letterkenny universe since the mothership premiered in 2016.
The hilarious Canadian comedy series and its spinoff, Shoresy, are among the most underrated comedy shows, boasting a unique blend of hockey, Canadian, rural, and a multitude of other types of humor.
Tierney is now giving gays the spotlight in a way Letterkenny or Shoresy never did in a new series, Heated Rivalry, according to a report by The Hollywood Reporter.
Based on Rachel Reid‘s novel of the same name, Tierney is writing the screen adaptation for the Canadian streaming platform, Crave.
Production has already begun, with the main and supporting cast already set.
Hudson Williams plays pro hockey star Shane Hollander of the Montreal Voyageurs, and Connor Storrie (Joker: Folie a Deux) plays Ilya Rozanov, the Boston Bears captain.
Other cast members are François Arnaud, Robbie G.K., Sophie Nélisse, Dylan Walsh, Christina Chang, and Ksenia Daniela Kharlamova.
What is ‘Heated Rivalry’ About?
Heated Rivalry fronts one of the most irresistible tropes in television: enemies to lovers. The show’s official synopsis, provided below, previews the dynamics between the main characters.
“Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov are two of the biggest stars in Major League Hockey, bound by ambition, rivalry and a magnetic pull neither of them fully understands. What begins as a secret fling between two confused teenagers at 17 evolves into a years-long journey of love, denial, and self-discovery.
“Over the next eight years, as they chase glory on the ice, they struggle to navigate their feelings off of it. Torn between the sport they live for and the love they can’t ignore, Shane and Ilya must decide if there’s room in their fiercely competitive world for something as fragile — and powerful — as real love.”
“Heated Rivalry had me hooked from the very first chapter. At its core, it’s a beautiful love story with characters who feel real and so deeply human,” Tierney said about adapting the project.
‘Heated Rivalry’ Is Not Connected to Letterkenny
Despite having some overlap in the sport portrayed and Tierney’s involvement, Heated Rivalry is not an extension of the Letterkenny universe.
It features fresh characters adapted from an unrelated source material.
However, Letterkenny has previewed what viewers can expect from a Jacob Tierney production about gay romance.
While not explicitly in the lead roles, Letterkenny featured a recurring gay couple, Ron (James Daly) and Dax (Gregory Waters).
They started as gym buddies but later got married. They derived absolute pleasure from antagonizing Reilly (Dylan Playfair) and Jonesy (Andrew Herr).
Another recurring gay-adjacent character is Pastor Glen, played by Tierney.
Flamboyant, Jesus-loving, and a little blasphemous, Pastor Glen could not be tamed and brought fresh chaos whenever he appeared.
Heated Rivalry is filming in southern Ontario, but a Crave premiere date is yet to be set.