This article contains spoilers for the show Heated Rivalry.
When snippets of the Canadian series Heated Rivalry started popping up on TikTok at the end of last year, 24-year-old Dima, who works as an engineer in Moscow, was intrigued by the steamy show centred on the romantic relationship between two professional hockey players — one Canadian, one Russian.
As he started watching it, he was hooked. He was immediately impressed by how U.S. actor Connor Storrie was able to nail the accent while portraying Ilya Rozanov, an arrogant and charismatic Russian centre.
And he felt a deep personal connection to Rozanov’s struggle with being open about his sexuality.
“When Ilya says he won’t be able to return to his country if he comes out — that’s pure truth,” said Dima. CBC News is only identifying him by his first name, given Russia’s severe anti-LGBTQ+ laws.
“Before, well, it was just condemned. Now it’s literally a reason for hatred … they can beat you, they can detain you, they can arrest you.”
Calls to ban the series
The show, based on a series of novels by Canadian author Rachel Reid, follows Rozanov and Asian-Canadian player Shane Hollander (played by Canadian Hudson Williams) over several years as they develop feelings for each other while maintaining an intense on-ice rivalry.
It’s become a global media sensation, sparking conversations around sexuality, homophobia in sport and acceptance, all while challenging the constructs of what is considered masculine.
In Canada, the series was created for Bell Media’s streaming platform, Crave, and airs on HBO Max in the U.S., but in Russia it’s only available through a VPN or on pirated sites, complete with subtitles or a Russian voiceover.
Even though it technically can’t be watched legally in Russia because of licensing restrictions, a national Orthodox organization is calling for it to be banned outright because of what it calls scenes of “unnatural debauchery.”
Despite the fact that the Kremlin has passed a series of increasingly repressive anti-LGBTQ+ laws, plenty of Russians fans are showing their love and appreciation for the series online.
A Canadian hockey romance is finding an unexpected audience in Russia. Fans there say Heated Rivalry’s narrative mirrors the reality for LGBTQ+ people living under Russia’s severe anti-LGBTQ+ laws.
On Kinopoisk, a Russian version of the Internet Movie Database, votes from more than 30,000 fans have given Heated Rivalry a rating of 8.6.
There are memes, posts and reels on social media from Russians who enthusiastically admit to binge watching the spicy content. In a nod to one of the episodes, a woman superimposes images of Rozanov all around a rural property, saying the hockey player could come to her “dacha,” or cottage, anytime.
But the series has also prompted deeper, albeit much more private, conversations in a country where same-sex unions aren’t recognized and the government goes to great lengths to extoll what it considers “traditional” values.
“People are watching it in part because it is forbidden, a guilty pleasure that the government would likely view as dangerous propaganda,” Dima said in a voice memo sent to CBC News via the Telegram messaging app.
Russia’s increasingly harsh laws
In December 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a sweeping law banning what his government defined as LGBTQ+ “propaganda.”
Several books, including those by Oscar Wilde, were taken off store shelves. Films depicting same-sex relationships, including Brokeback Mountain, were removed by Russian streaming sites.
Under the law, anyone deemed to be promoting “untraditional sexual relations” could be fined up to 400,000 rubles, the equivalent of about $7,200 Cdn.
Earlier this week, on Jan. 13, a court in Moscow filed administrative charges against several executives at Russian streaming sites for the alleged distribution of LGBTQ+ propaganda. It’s not clear what content prompted the charges.
But Russia has also gone further, moving to introduce the prospect of prison time for those it deems to be activists.
In 2023, after a closed door hearing, Russia’s Supreme Court declared what it called the “international LGBT movement” an extremist organization.
In 2024, the first arrests were carried out under the new law. Two employees of an LGBTQ+ club were arrested and could face up to ten years if they are convicted.
The increasing pressure has prompted some to flee Russia, and for those who stay, to more tightly conceal their private lives.
Keeping their sexuality secret
Dima says he “accepted” that he was gay when he was 19, but he’s careful not to reveal anything except to those he is closest to. When he talks about going out on the weekend, he will tell people he went out with his girlfriend, instead of his boyfriend.
“The problem is that I’m getting used to it,” he said. “I’ve come to terms with the fact that this is how things are for us and there’s no other way.”
At work, when he hears his colleagues making hateful, anti-LGBTQ+ comments, Dima says he stays quiet, so as not to give away anything about himself.
Dima says it’s easy for him to forget that he’s gay because he tries so hard to distance himself from the community.
He likes the fact that the first season of Heated Rivalry ended with Hollander coming out to his parents, but admitted he felt envious as he watched.
“Coming out to my parents turned out completely different, and I watch how his parents accept him, I feel so good for him,” he said.
“I genuinely envy Shane that he has such parents.”
Broader appeal
For Oli, who lived in St. Petersburg before leaving Russia in 2022, the show serves as a reminder that “being queer is OK.”
Oli, who uses she/he pronouns, fled the country because of its repressive laws, but still helps other LBGTQ+ Russians. That’s why CBC is not using Oli’s full name.
While Oli says the show has clearly resonated with the LGBTQ+ community, it also has broader appeal, especially among young women.
A song by Russian pop duo t.A.T.u features prominently in one episode, and the group has reportedly earned hundreds of thousands of new listeners on Russian streaming site Yandex Music.
It is also now frequently sampled as part of reels and videos on social media.
“This show is the reason why [some people] have a good mood, especially right now, because it’s winter,” said Oli in a Zoom interview with CBC News. “This is like some sun … and they were very excited to watch the show.”
