Québécois actor François Arnaud, best known for roles in “The Borgias” and currently starring as Scott hunter in the Crave/HBO Max hit Heated Rivalry, is navigating the complexities of sudden, global fame. The sports romance, praised for its LGBTQ+ representation, has rapidly become a cultural phenomenon, but not without intensifying scrutiny of its stars’ personal lives and sparking fervent debate among fans. Arnaud this week addressed online harassment and the challenges of maintaining privacy amid a whirlwind promotional tour and overwhelming social media attention.
Heated Rivalry, the Crave drama series centered on a love story between two hockey players, has become a global phenomenon starring Québecois actor François Arnaud as veteran forward Scott Hunter.
The series, which airs on HBO Max in the United States, quickly captured the attention of American media, with its cast making appearances on late-night talk shows and red carpets. The show’s success reflects a growing appetite for LGBTQ+ stories in mainstream entertainment.
François Arnaud says he realized the scale of the buzz surrounding Heated Rivalry after it was already underway.
“I remember telling my agent, ‘I think this is going to be huge worldwide.’ But I didn’t expect it to blow up overnight like this,” the Montreal-born actor shared during an interview Friday.
“It’s something to manage, being constantly in the spotlight. I can’t walk down the street for 20 seconds without being recognized.”
The show has also sparked intense online debate, a flood of fan attention, and a level of visibility that has significantly altered Arnaud’s daily life.
“It’s incredible, but also a little scary… I’ve always valued normalcy, so it takes some getting used to.”
This week, Arnaud was harassed by paparazzi throughout New York City during a promotional tour, prompting him to reconsider his housing situation in Los Angeles.
“I thought to myself, ‘Maybe a small bungalow with direct street access, not in a gated community, isn’t ideal,’” he explained. “So, yes, I’m going to move into a building with a doorman.”
After being photographed at JFK airport with Connor Storrie, his co-star in Heated Rivalry, on Wednesday, a storm erupted on social media. Some fans of the series criticized Arnaud for seemingly disrupting the illusion that Storrie’s real life should mirror his on-screen romance with Hudson Williams.
“Generally, the fans have been incredibly positive and respectful. As for the few who aren’t, I think it’s mostly younger fans who don’t really differentiate between reality and fiction,” Arnaud said.
“Honestly, I wish they would rewatch the series, because it seems like they missed the message. Pay closer attention. Did we even watch the same show?”
In the series, Ilya Rozanov (played by Storrie) and Shane Hollander (played by Williams) are hockey stars who conceal their homosexual relationship out of fear of negative repercussions. This tension is also present in the story of Hunter, who has a discreet romance with a barista played by Robbie G.K.
Stepping Back From Social Media
Arnaud also made headlines Thursday after unfollowing his Heated Rivalry colleagues and creator Jacob Tierney on Instagram. On Friday, he posted a series of photos showing three images of Williams giving the middle finger, along with a fourth of Arnaud doing the same—a gesture many fans interpreted as a response to the controversy.
Arnaud insists people are reading too much into it.
“It has absolutely nothing to do with that,” he asserted regarding his Instagram post.
“Okay, ‘absolutely’ might be a bit of an exaggeration, but basically, it has nothing to do with it. I’ve been doing these ‘spot the difference’ games for a long time, and I just thought it would be fun to do something with Hudson, that’s all.”
Arnaud explained that the unfollows were part of a broader move away from social media.
“Actually, I’m unfollowing everyone, and Instagram doesn’t let me do it all at once. You can only unfollow a certain number of people in 24 hours, which I didn’t know at the time,” he clarified.
He has since re-followed the Heated Rivalry team, though he says he’ll likely unfollow them again eventually.
“I’m going to unfollow everyone except Amnesty International,” he promised.
He shared that the intense fan attention surrounding the series has prompted him to spend less time online. He’s blocked X (formerly Twitter) on his phone and stopped reading the comments.
“It’s nice. It gives me a good excuse to disconnect and not pay attention to it.”
“I’m reading a lot of great scripts, meeting a lot of great people, and I want to read and go for walks in the forest.”
He’s looking for roles that are a departure from the affable Scott Hunter.
“Not that I didn’t love playing Scott Hunter. I’ll probably play him again, and I want to,” said Arnaud, who first gained recognition in Xavier Dolan’s 2009 film, “I Killed My Mother.”
“But I’m always trying to reinvent myself and surprise myself. I’m looking in unexpected places to see if I fit.”
A Series Offering Hope
Despite the chaos, Heated Rivalry has offered something rare: a truly massive audience. Arnaud shared that he’s received messages from viewers from all walks of life—from heterosexual men to grandmothers—who were drawn to the series’ warmth and emotional authenticity.
“The message of the series is really joyful, hopeful. We are so overinformed these days. It’s become difficult to just watch the news. There are characters who go through hardships, but ultimately, you feel this aspiration for happiness.”
Arnaud joked that the promotion for Heated Rivalry has been so intense that the actors are running out of things to talk about. Fortunately, he has other projects on the horizon.
He will play a quirky DJ in a dramedy directed by Annapurna Sriram and will appear in Abril, a portrait of motherhood directed by Hernán Jiménez, which will premiere next month at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival. It marks his first time working in Spanish.
Amidst whirlwind promotional tours, online trolls, and peaceful forest walks, Arnaud’s message to fans remains simple.
“Love is love is love. I love everyone,” he said with a laugh.
