Justice Smith Responds to ‘Heated Rivalry’ Casting: “I Am Moved by the Support and Love”

Justice Smith is speaking out following the news he’s joining season two of Heated Rivalry. The 31-year-old actor has been cast as Harris Drover in the hit Crave-HBO Max show.

He and Charlie Gillespie, who will play Troy Barrett, join in leading roles alongside Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie. However, many online were quick to defend the casting, including Rachel Reid, who wrote the novels Heated Rivalry is based upon.

What Happened

“Thinking about all the people last summer who told me the casting for Ilya and Shane was wrong and bad…” she wrote on an Instagram story shortly after the casting news was announced Friday. “Rachel Reid has given us two beautifully layered.

• The show will begin shooting its second season this month and is aiming for a spring 2027 release.

• Mike Goldbach joins season two as co-writer alongside Tierney.

• Brady and Jayme Alter Wilson serve as executive producers, alongside Lori Fischburg and Liane Cunje as producers.

Key Details

Tierney serves as writer, director and executive producer on the series.

• HBO Max has confirmed it will continue to air the series.

• Crave renewed Heated Rivalry for a second season early into the show’s first season run.

• The Russian hockey player made the decision to move to the team in the finale of the show’s first season to be closer to Heated Rivalry’s other main character and his now-boyfriend, Shane Hollander.

Why It Matters

Ottawa is expected to be the season two home for main character Ilya Rozanov, played by Connor Storrie, who moves to the low-ranking Canadian team.

What Reports Say

Coverage of the story so far points to:

• Continued reporting by The Hollywood Reporter as more details emerge