Heated Rivalry is currently one of the most talked-about series on any streaming platform. It has fans who are quite passionate about its romantic storyline, to say the least. However, now two stars of the series have aimed at a particular subset of fans whom they don't feel are the sorts of fans they want.In identical posts to Instagram, Heated Rivalry's Hudson Williams and François Arnaud have called out what they call "hateful 'love'" from fans who, despite the themes of the series, they believe have been posting bigoted material. The statement reads...
Don't call yourself a fan if you share racist/homophobic/biphobic/misogynistic/ageist/ableist/parasocial/bigoted comments of any kind None of us need your hateful "love" We all respect and support and love each other and are on the same side if you can't accept that gtfoh
The fact that both Williams and Arnaud made identical posts at the same time shows coordination and indicates this has been a topic of discussion among those that are part of Heated Rivalry. It's become enough of an issue that at least these two felt the need to say something. Needless to say, Heated Rivalry has the most up front and public gay characters in media right now. While this fact has caused many to embrace the show, which allows gay characters to experience a traditional romance on television, others have been less than welcoming to the series for all the same reasons.There has also been some within the gay community who have taken issue with the series. The way Heated Rivalry portrayed its sex scenes was critcized by I Love LA's Jordan Firstman. However, what ever strong feelings there were on the topic appear to have been worked out.
And there have been those people who appear to be the real target of this post, fans whose apparent passion for the series crosses a line. Some have seemingly blurred the line between fiction and reality, believing that actors on the show are, or should be, together in reality. The sexuality of various actors is being repeatedly questioned, despite that being none of the business of those doing the questioning.A second season of Heated Rivalry is already planned, and there is a third book on the way in the romance novel series that inspired the show, so if the passionate fan base remains its a safe bet that Heated Rivalry will be with us for a while. With that being the case, the stars must make it clear how they feel about certain fans, as any inappropriate behavior now is only likely to get worse if something isn't done.
