'Heated Rivalry' Star Claims Closeted Pro Athletes Have Privately Reached Out After Show's Viral Success

The Crave and HBO Max series Heated Rivalry isn't just blowing fans' minds. It might actually be breaking real boundaries.

The Canadian series, which centers on the love and sex lives of gay professional hockey players, has been everywhere recently.

And series star Hudson Williams says it's resulted in some important moments with hockey players in real-life—specifically, ones where they have come out to him.

During a stop on Andy Cohen's XM radio show Radio Andy, Williams told Cohen that he has heard from a handful of closeted pro-athletes showing appreciation for the show.

Williams told Cohen that both he and Rachel Reid, the author of the series of books on which the show is based, have received tons of DMs and emails from professional athletes identifying themselves as queer but closeted.

“The people who reach out, somewhat anonymously, who are like, ‘I'm a professional player still, and I'm still in the closet.'“

"They’re [also] reaching out to Rachel [Reid], our author, who will then kind of relay these lovely anonymous emails.”

Williams says he's heard from athletes in basketball, football and hockey eager to connect with him and share their experiences as closeted queer men in sports.

And he said it made him more aware that Heated Rivalry is more than just a steamy queer romp. It's making real people feel validated.

“Sometimes they’re just reaching out privately through Instagram, and those ones are the ones that really just kind of hit you and go, ‘Oh, so this is a fun show, and it’s celebratory, but also sometimes it’s just hitting people right in the nerve.'”

In contrast to many women's leagues, professional sports has long been a notoriously inhospitable place for queer and gay men.

While several professional male American athletes have come out after their careers ended, a startling few have done so during active careers.

The 2014 drafting of the first openly gay NFL player, Michael Sam, caused a firestorm of controversy. Sam was cut before the season began.

That same year, Jason Collins became the first openly gay NBA player. He was followed in 2021 by Carl Nassib, the first openly gay NFL player to actually play the sport, and Luke Prokop, the first openly gay NHL player.

But among the big four male sports leagues in America, that's pretty much it, so it's not hard to see why Heated Rivalry, which not only depicts gay athletes but addresses this difficult secrecy head-on, would be so resonant with those in sports.

On social media, people were deeply moved by Williams' comments.

Here's hoping Heated Rivalry helps push us toward a time when queer athletes can feel comfortable being themselves both on and off the field.