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"Heated Rivalry" Season 2 is coming "as soon as humanly possible," says creator Jacob Tierney

By
Sarah Lynch Baldwin
Deputy Managing Editor
Sarah Lynch Baldwin is a deputy managing editor of CBSNews.com. She helps lead national and breaking news coverage and shapes editorial workflows.
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Sarah Lynch Baldwin

/ CBS News

A second season of "Heated Rivalry" is in the works, with shooting expected to begin in August.

"We are writing it now," show creator and director Jacob Tierney said on  on Thursday. "We're getting ready to start shooting this summer. And there will be more 'Heated Rivalry' on your TVs as — like, truly — as soon as humanly possible."

The next season is expected in 2027, but a release date has not been announced yet.

"Like the best parts of this show, just enjoy the yearn," executive producer Brendan Brady said about the wait for the second season.

The romance on HBO Max about hockey players Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov begins with a secret fling between two rivals and eventually turns into a yearslong journey of love, denial and self-discovery. It is based on the "Game Changers" book series by Rachel Reid and has been so popular that it has averaged more than 10.5 million viewers per episode in the U.S. alone, according to Warner Bros. Discovery.

Tierney believes it resonates because it is "very romantic."

"It has the hallmarks and trappings of a real classic romance, years of longing and yearning and trying to get together and do the right thing for each other and not being able to, and then eventually a happy ending," he said.

"It is laser-focused on that love story. There's not a lot of diversion from it. And I think that's what the audience responds to, is kind of the intensity and the focus of the storytelling," he said.

Editor's note: "Heated Rivalry" Season 2 will begin shooting in August, but no official release date has been announced.

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