The 2026 Emmy Award nominations were released on Wednesday afternoon, and there was at least one notable name missing from the pack: Heated Rivalry.
The hit hockey show, created by Jacob Tierney and based on a book series from author Rachel Reid, took the world by storm at the end of last year, when it premiered to both critical and fan acclaim. The six-episode drama also launched the careers of leads Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams, unknown at the time, and spawned a plethora of unaffiliated spin-off content, like Saturday Night Live sketches, Heated Rivalry-themed dance events at gay bars, and even an Off-Broadway musical. At last check, the HBO Max-streamed show had averaged 10.6 million viewers per episode in the U.S, according to a May report from Variety.
But at least the first season of the series cannot win an Emmy, the most prestigious award in American television.
Why, exactly, is that?
Well, Heated Rivalry is actually a Canadian production, having been fully funded and created by Crave, a Toronto-based streaming platform. And according to Television Academy rules, eligible shows must either originate on a U.S. network or have a U.S. partner that is deeply involved in production from the jump. HBO is clearly the show's U.S. partner, but the streaming outlet did not enter the fold until just before the drama aired, meaning it had nothing to do with the series' development or production. Therefore, no Emmy.
“If HBO had been a producer on it—if they had financed half of it, had some creative control, so they were involved in the hiring of writers and actors, etc.—then it could have done that,” TV Academy president Maury McIntyre told Vulture in April. “But it was just a complete pickup.”
And unless the outlet further joins production next season, or perhaps begs for a credit it doesn't currently have (neither of which seems likely to happen), the next installment of the show will not be eligible, either.
“I think the last thing the show needs is people meddling in what works,” Casey Bloys, chairman and CEO of HBO and Max content, told Variety in December. “Clearly, they’ve got a good sense of the show and what works. So I will be excited to receive my episodes and highlight them on HBO Max.”
I have mixed feelings about it all. Both leads deserve nominations for their performances, which were as nuanced, complicated and beautiful as if the pair had been preparing for these roles since birth. The Texas-born Storrie, in particular, really dazzled, having perfected a Russian accent and performed the difficult language with the accuracy of a Moscow native. And while it's not like the pair joined the show to earn individual awards, it would certainly prove a thrilling turn of events, especially considering their otherwise empty trophy cases.
Moreover, it would be fabulous to see the show take home a top prize, considering its subject matter. The NHL remains an incredibly heterosexual and machismo-driven league (save for Luke Prokop, the only active and openly gay player), and perhaps honoring a show that seeks to increase representation among those ranks would do, well, exactly that.
All that said, the show is what it is precisely because HBO didn't get involved. I would hate for later seasons to be manhandled—or worse, censored—by a U.S.-based network just for the sake of award nominations. The TV Academy has the rules it does for a reason, and sometimes, that means the best show of the year, or at least the most impactful, doesn't get a shot at the crown.
“We would have waited the entire season to see a kiss,” Tierney told the Ankler in December, referring to the impact of outside involvement. "We definitely would not have had sex in the first episode. It would have been about a whole team with 20 other players and their wives and anything to dilute the essence of what this was."
Also, for what it's worth, Heated Rivalry has been awarded by other creative regimes; it was nominated for more than 15 Canadian Screen Awards this spring, won a prestigious Peabody in April, and took home a GLAAD Media Award back in March. It will also be eligible for an International Emmy, if it is submitted; it just cannot win or be nominated for the traditional Television Academy-sponsored ceremony.
Will we still see Storrie, Williams and Tierney at the September Emmys anyway? Absolutely. I would bet thousands of dollars that the series will be represented in some manner, whether it's the two actors presenting an award or engaging in a performance of some kind. Storrie was also nominated for his work as a guest host on SNL, which is fabulous news for his rising star. But neither he nor Williams will be taking home a trophy for Heated Rivalry. And that's both good and bad, in my opinion.
