With the immense, and unexpected success of Heated Rivalry, cast members have been forced to deal with an intense amount of scrutiny and backlash, which they have called out on social media.
On Monday, March 9, Hudson Williams, who plays the lead role of Shane Hollander in the queer-hockey series, shared a note on his Instagram Story, condemning "fans" for their hateful language.
"Don't call yourself a fan if you share racist, homophobic, biphobic, misogynistic, ageist, ableist, parasocial [or] bigoted comments of any kind," the note read.
He added, "None of us need your hateful "love"".
"We all respect and support and love each other and are on the same side. If you can't accept that gtfoh," the message concluded.
Williams' co-star François Arnaud, who portrays Scott Hunter on the hit series, shared the same post on his own Instagram Story.
Moreover, Robbie Graham-Kuntz, who stars as Kip, the love interest of Arnaud, show creator Jacob Tierney and author Rachel Reid also shared the same sentiment.
Heated Rivalry has become a pop cultural phenomenon with the story following two rival ice hockey players, Shane and Ilya Rozanov (Connor Storrie), and their closeted romance spanning over years.
However, since its release in December last year, the cast of the show, some of whom were complete unknown prior to the debut, have received some unwanted attention.
Williams, Storrie and Arnaud have been bombarded with messages and speculation about their personal lives, romance and sexuality.
The 40-year-old has also been the subject of online abuse over rumours that he and Storrie, 25, are dating.
The social media update came days after the series bagged the Outstanding New TV Series award at the GLAAD Media Awards.
Moreover, it has been confirmed that the production on season 2 of Heated Rivalry is slated to kick off in August, with an expected release date set to fall in April 2027.
