Prime Minister Mark Carney made a surprise appearance at Prime Time on Thursday evening, the Canadian Media Producers Association’s annual screen and media production sector gathering underway in Ottawa.
Carney took part in a conversation sponsored by the Canada Media Fund (CMF) on the success of global Canadian hit Heated Rivalry, hamming it up on the red carpet with star Hudson Williams.
@ctvnews Prime Minister Mark Carney joked about the chemistry he and ‘Heated Rivalry’ star Hudson Williams had on the red carpet in Ottawa on Thursday. #carney #heatedrivalry #hudsonwilliams ♬ original sound – CTVNews
The Prime Minister addressed the audience ahead of the In Conversation With… event, praising the series about two rising hockey stars who fall for each other at a time when “the hard-fought rights of the 2SLGBTQI+ community are under threat, including in many of the countries where the show has record-setting audiences.”
“A fundamental Canadian value is that people should be able to be whoever they want to be. To love whoever they want to love,” said Carney.
In addition to Williams, the panel featured co-star Sophie Nélisse (Rose); Creator, Writer, Director and Executive Producer Jacob Tierney; Executive Producer Brendan Brady, and moderator Lainey Lui from CTV’s etalk.
Among other points, the conversation highlighted how a show like the Crave original series could only be made in Canada.
“Heated Rivalry challenges expectations—about genre, about representation, about what Canadian stories can look like and where they can travel,” said CMF President and CEO Valerie Creighton on the Prime Time stage. “It’s bold, it’s important, and it proves that authenticity is our biggest strength.”
Adapted from Nova Scotia author Rachel Reid’s Game Changers book series, Heated Rivalry is Crave’s #1 original series debut on record. The Bell Media-owned streamer has already renewed it for a second season, with the series picked up by HBO Max in the U.S., Australia, Asia, Latin America, and Europe (excluding UK and Ireland, Spain, and Turkey) where it’s held the top spot for more than 20 consecutive days. Sky has secured rights in the UK and Ireland, NEON in New Zealand, and Movistar Plus+ in Spain.
According to data provided by CMF, social media content about Heated Rivalry reaches over 540 million accounts every day, with its average online demand 67 times that of all other series globally. As of mid-January, the series had been watched for more than 600 million minutes in the U.S. alone.
