Will we be getting a Heated Rivalry season 2?
If you’re as obsessed as we are with the hot hot hockey romance, based on Rachel Reid’s steamy novel series, you’ve already binged every available episode twice and are eagerly waiting for news of renewal…which HBO Max has not announced. YET.
Here’s what we know so far about a potential second season, from the plot to the returning cast.
Why hasn’t Heated Rivalry season 2 been announced?
The machinations of Hollywood are mysterious even to those in the know, and executives tend to give shows a bit more breathing room, as in, waiting a bit longer after they premiere before announcing renewals. They want to see if shows are flash-in-the-pan successes or have legs, becoming discussion-starters that generate fandoms.
On all of those points, Heated Rivalry looks good. As of December 8, with three episodes out, it’s at the number-two spot on HBO Max’s streaming rankings. It took four episodes for I Love LA to secure a second season announcement.
The truth is, we don’t know what’s going on behind the scenes. What’s in everyone’s contract? Who wants a raise? How much does it cost to make this show? What scheduling conflicts could keep a second season on hold? But there is one major, obvious hang-up that could be getting in the way…
Does the HBO sale affect Heated Rivalry?
ICYMI, Warner Bros. Discover CEO David Zaslav is currently trying to do a “merger” with Netflix, but putting WBD (HBO’s parent company) up for sale has left it vulnerable to a hostile takeover from Paramount Skydance, which, if you didn’t know, is run by David Ellison, a one-time actor and son of Oracle founder Larry Ellison, who bought himself a movie studio. In sum, two rich guys named David (and one rich guy named Ted [Sarandos], Netflix’s CEO) are playing tug of war with Hollywood.
However! Heated Rivalry is not an HBO original. It’s a Canadian series produced by Crave, which has a partnership with HBO Max. It’s quite possible that without some kind of commitment from HBO, which I’d imagine is hard for the company to make right now with everything going on, Crave might be hitting pause on renewals. But they also have a hit on their hands. They could partner with another Stateside streamer or potentially find another workaround.
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