‘Heated Rivalry’ Stars Hudson Williams and François Arnaud Reject ‘Bigoted’ Fans in Fiery Joint Statement
“Heated Rivalry” stars Hudson Williams and François Arnaud denounced fans that left “bigoted” comments on social media, calling on their followers to show only “respect and love.”
The actors issued a joint statement on their Instagram Stories Monday evening, where they called out fans whose online activity could be viewed as “homophobic” or “racist” or even “parasocial.”
“Don’t call yourself a fan if you share racist/homophobic /biphobic/misogynistic/ageist/ableist/parasocial/bigoted comments of any kind,” Williams and Arnaud sounded off. “None of us need your hateful ‘love.'”
They continued: “We all respect and support and love each other and are on the same side. If you can’t accept that gtfoh.”
Additionally, Williams and Arnaud’s co-star Ksenia Daniela Kharlamova also spoke out against hate speech after she faced nasty comments following her International Women’s Day post on X.
On Sunday, Kharlamova, who plays Svetlana, wrote, “Since it’s Women’s Day I want to say the women you see at industry events are there bcuz they are just as deserving of being in those rooms! The assumption that we are there because our male co-stars invited us takes away the work we also put in. Celebrate women’s achievements!”
Shortly after posting this, Kharlamova followed up her remarks with, “Also if you’re using this tweet to criticize my cast mates you missed the point! They are amazing!! I said CELEBRATE WOMEN not hate on male actors.”
Also if you’re using this tweet to criticize my cast mates you missed the point! They are amazing!! I said CELEBRATE WOMEN not hate on male actors
— Ksenia Daniela (@K_DanielaK) March 9, 2026
The statements came about after the HBO Max/Crave show sparked an intense following for the actors both in real life and online. While some of the experiences have been positive, including the show inspiring one closeted hockey player to come out, others have been less than pleasant — such as the constant paparazzi attention.
In fact, back in January, Williams noted on the “Shut Up Evan” podcast that he and co-star Connor Storrie “have had to learn what a lot of actors get in five years, in like 30 days.”
“That person didn’t necessarily want that photo taken,” he added. “It is maybe not nefarious, but it’s not sweet and it’s not fully welcomed. It doesn’t make us feel safe or really like we can disarm.”
Based on the “Game Changers” book series, “Heated Rivalry” follows two hockey stars (played by Williams and Storrie) as they fall into a years-spanning secret romance.
Back in December, the show nabbed a Season 2 renewal from Crave and HBO Max, where all the episodes from Season 1 are available to stream.
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