Jacob Tierney Defends “Heated Rivalry” Star Hudson Williams With A Blunt Message To Racist Fans
Heated Rivalry creator Jacob Tierney has spoken out against the racist abuse directed at lead actor Hudson Williams, calling him “a fucking star” in an interview with Deadline published in April 2026. Williams, who is half-Korean, plays the lead role of Shane Hollander in the hit Crave and HBO Max series.
The cast called it out first
Since the show premiered in November 2025, a vocal subset of fans have directed racist comments at Williams over his Korean heritage. His mother is Korean; his father is of British and Dutch descent. Co-star Ksenia Daniela Kharlamova, who is Russian-Trinidadian, has also been targeted for playing a character whose book counterpart is white European. François Arnaud has faced abuse over his bisexuality.
So what exactly are these people angry about? That the actors don’t match the expectations they built up from the books.
In March, Williams, Arnaud, and several cast members posted a joint statement on Instagram. “Don’t call yourself a fan if you share racist/homophobic/biphobic/misogynist/ageist/ableist/parasocial/bigoted comments of any kind,” it read. “None of us need your hateful ‘love’. We all respect and support and love each other.”
Kharlamova shared the post and added her own line: “Please don’t make a show that’s about love be hateful online.”
Tierney didn’t hold back
Speaking to Deadline, Tierney was direct about the casting. “We have a non-white lead. I think that’s important,” he said. “You don’t need to be making an Asian show to have an Asian lead. Hudson’s a fucking star, man.”
He also admitted the scale of the fandom reaction, both good and bad, took the team by surprise. “We didn’t expect any of this attention or reaction from a public that might not exist at all,” Tierney said. “We’ve learned a lot, and there’s a lot to think about moving forward in terms of the fandom and all that comes with it, negative and positive.”
A show that’s earned its place
Based on Rachel Reid’s Game Changers novels, Heated Rivalry follows two closeted professional hockey players on rival teams who maintain a secret relationship. It holds a 96% score on Rotten Tomatoes, won the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding New TV Series, and became Crave’s most-watched original series (Deadline, 2026).
Williams was nominated for Best Lead Performer at the 2026 Canadian Screen Awards. He and co-star Connor Storrie carried the Olympic torch at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina. The show and its stars have more than proved themselves.
Season 2 is set to begin filming in August 2026, with a premiere expected in April 2027. We’ll be covering it. If the first season proved anything, it’s that Heated Rivalry is bigger than its worst fans.
