Heated Rivalry’s Cast, Author And Creator Had A+ Reactions To Andy Cohen And Anderson Cooper Calling It Out Multiple Times

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I was confident Heated Rivalry would be a success, but that was really confirmed when Andy Cohen and Anderson Cooper talked about it several times during their New Year’s Eve broadcast. They repeatedly mentioned the popular, steamy, LGBTQ+ hockey show while hosting on CNN. Now, the show’s creators and actors, along with the author of the original books, have shared their enthusiastic reactions to being chosen to launch the 2026 TV season with the network.

Cooper and Cohen’s New Year’s Eve show was delightfully chaotic as always. The broadcast included a dramatic reading of Taylor Swift’s “Wood,” puppets of the hosts themselves, and frequent mentions of their show, Heated Rivalry, which is available to stream on HBO Max.

At one point, Cohen and Cooper were discussing who was Ilya and Shane of the two of them. While the Bravo personality said he was Shane, and the journalist was Ilya, Cooper had to disagree with him. Rather than opting to relate to the two lead characters, he said he’s much more like the smoothie maker Kip, who is a supporting character at the center of Episode 3’s love story as he falls in love with star hockey player Scott. It was hilarious, and author Rachel Reid thought so too, as she reposted the moment with the following reaction on her IG story:

Along with Reid posting her thoughts about this hilarious interaction, Robbie G.K., who plays Kip on Heated Rivalry, responded too. He commented on Evan Ross Katz’s post about Cooper saying he was the most like Kip with the following statement:

[Anderson Cooper] right answer king 👏🏼

What a fabulous reaction! However, the fun does not end there.

Okay, so Stephen Colbert was on Watch What Happens Live with his wife, Evie, and things got really funny. Andy Cohen and Cooper were playfully teasing them, and Cohen actually said Evie was “the top” in their relationship! Colbert immediately quipped back that he’s “a bossy bottom,” which totally cracked Anderson Cooper up. He was laughing so hard he had to ask if the whole Heated Rivalry dynamic was just driving everyone a little crazy!

This was the moment Jacob Tierney, the show’s creator, director, writer and executive producer, reacted to on Instagram. Posting screenshots of the three men during this hilarious interaction, he simply used an emoji to perfectly encapsulate his feelings about this situation:

You can watch the show Heated Rivalry with an HBO Max subscription, which costs as little as $10.99 a month. All six episodes of the first season are currently available. See the deal here.

As of right now, Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams – the actors who play Ilya and Shane – haven’t seen this crazy broadcast. But if they do, there’s even more to react to! Along with the previous comments, Cooper and Cohen also asked Brandi Carlile if lesbians enjoy Heated Rivalry, and she replied that it’s been constantly on her mind.

This book adaptation has really captured the public’s imagination, popping up repeatedly during New Year’s Eve celebrations and sparking a lot of funny reactions from both fans and the show’s creators. As one writer pointed out, everyone seems completely obsessed with this charming love story – even Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen are hooked!

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2026-01-01 22:38