Heated Rivalry is making headlines courtesy of Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie‘s onscreen connection — but what is there to know about the actor who plays Shane Hollander?
Based on Rachel Reid‘s Game Changers book series, Heated Rivalry follows two rival professional hockey players Shane Hollander (Williams) and Ilya Rozanov (Storrie), whose animosity on the ice is just a front for a secret romance.
After premiering on Crave and HBO Max in November 2025, Heated Rivalry blew up on social media due to the heated scenes between Williams and Storrie. Creator Jacob Tierney opened up about the work that went into developing the fictional TV couple.
“We talked about how every time these guys aren’t touching, they want to be,” Tierney told Swooon at the time. “So the act of not touching should be more difficult for them than touching. They would want to be physical with one another, and that’s part of the public/private dance that they do, and the frustration of being in public.”
He continued: “There’s a magnetism because there are two characters that essentially have this chemistry immediately. This magnetic electric thing is happening between them, and they do not get to satisfy it because they’re not allowed to be physical with each other the way that they would like to be in public.”
Williams, meanwhile, broke down the conversations he had with Storrie about Shane and Ilya’s journey.
“Even the moments when they’re not touching, there’s a yearning to touch. There’s a good period in the show where they’ve kind of broken that barrier, and there’s a little bit more comfort,” he explained. “But the language of physical communication still has a beautiful evolution where it gets more comfortable by the time you reach the later episodes. It’s changes quite a bit, and I think having a great intimacy coordinator and Jacob there, they were able to help navigate us that language and remind us of where it could possibly be harder in moments for Shane and Ilya, and where we can just fully envelop each other with everything we want to do.”
Keep scrolling for everything to know about Williams:
What Roles Is Hudson Williams Known For?
Before Heated Rivalry, Williams wrote, directed and starred in various short films including the 2024 short Rancid. He also appeared in Brim Reaper, Teresa’s Choice, Peace of Mind, Mrs. Changs Perfect Teeth, Chad GPT, The Dating Game and Snow Angel.
Heated Rivalry is Williams’ first major TV role after guest roles on Tracker, Allegiance and TV movies All I Need for Christmas and Nobody Dumps My Daughter.
How Did Hudson Williams Work to Bring Shane Hollander to Life?
“I am half-Korean, and then my dad is British-Dutch Canadian,” Williams told The PR Press in November 2025. “I think it meant a lot to me and my mom. … My mom is Korean. She always thought it would be harder for me to break into film and acting because she hadn’t really seen anyone.”
What Is Hudson Williams’ Favorite Part About the ‘Heated Rivalry’ Role?
Williams said he “fell in love with Shane immediately” after joining the show.
“I mean, I was falling in love with him even when I read the sides, which were just the audition. It was two scenes that I got for the audition. By the time I finished reading episode 6, I was crying. I felt like no one else was allowed to play him. I needed to play him,” he told Out Magazine in November 2025. “Shane is very affable, even though he’s sort of a departure from myself. As much anxiety as I have, Shane has quadruple, tenfold more, and it’s just pouring out of him at all times.”
Williams continued: “And that was fun to play, even if sometimes my stomach hurt. I always thought of him as sort of this pretty, neurotic character. This little concoction of this flowery, determined, sort of alpha in some ways — or sort of wanting to appear so — and then just this pretty little sensitive painting in other ways.”
How Did Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie Develop Their Onscreen Chemistry?
During a joint interview with Storrie for Swooon, Williams discussed the intensive sex scenes.
“Just with friends, I don’t feel like I am fully able to be earnest with them if I don’t establish a touch barrier with them — consensually, of course!” Williams joked at the time. “But the similarity for me and Shane is that, especially when we’re in love, there needs to be constant touching even when the scene isn’t intimate in that sort of way.”
Williams elaborated on exploring the intimacy in subtle ways, adding, “Sometimes, a rough sex scene might be easier than just a conversational scene where you want to kind of touch a leg or touch a shoulder. It can feel like a 10-mile drive to brush a cheek. But we had such a good relationship that I was able to express myself in that way through Shane and with Connor. That was really lovely.”
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