The Unbridled Gayness of ‘Heated Rivalry’ Is Absolutely Perfect For the Trump Era

During what feels like a very dark time for queer people, this horny HBO series offers a much-needed respite.

Living through 2025 as a gay person felt like tripping and falling into the darkest possible timeline. We unexpectedly lost some of our icons to MAGA: Carrie Underwood sang at Donald Trump’s inauguration. Sydney Sweeney perplexed us by shilling jeans by way of eugenics. And Nicki Minaj turned out to be a Trump-loving, right-wing mouthpiece.

The tail end of a year that disappointed us in unexpected ways did yield one silver lining: a wildly successful, deliciously horny HBO Max series about two gay professional athletes who can’t keep their hands off each other.

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For those who haven’t had the pleasure of watching yet, “Heated Rivalry” follows two professional hockey players on different teams, Canadian Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams) and Russian Ilya Rozanov (Connor Storrie), as they navigate a steamy secret relationship while also being massive rivals on the ice.

As a liberal gay who loves a good queer film, I have to admit that the show was scandalous, even by my standards. In the very first episode, the main characters are already giving each other sloppy head with a full-frontal POV, and you can see everything except their genitals. This is in major contrast to other recent popular queer shows and movies of the same caliber (like “Red, White & Royal Blue”) that rush through their sex scenes in a way that almost feels infused with anxiety that they’re making their viewers uncomfortable.