The world of hockey romance is seeing some exciting developments once again, with five fresh faces set to join the cast of Crave’s popular series, Heated Rivalry.
Emily Hampshire, a well-known Canadian actress, will take on the role of Vanessa, a sex shop employee, while Sabrina Jalees, a Canadian comedian and actress, will portray sports agent Farah Jalali. Additionally, drag queen Priyanka will play Tarek, an office assistant.
Emily Hampshire is recognized for her performances in the sitcom Schitt’s Creek and the TV series 12 Monkeys. Sabrina Jalees previously hosted the radio and web show Laugh Out Loud and wrote for Canada’s Got Talent. Priyanka emerged victorious in the inaugural season of Canada’s Drag Race.
The cast will also feature Robert Naylor, a Canadian actor and musician, as goaltender Wyatt Hayes, and Edvin Ryding, a Swedish actor, as rookie hockey player Luca Haas.
Robert Naylor is renowned for lending his voice to D.W. Read in the animated series Arthur, while Edvin Ryding starred as Prince Wilhelm in Netflix’s Young Royals.
The announcement of the new cast members was shared on Instagram on Thursday. The upcoming season two of Heated Rivalry will continue to follow the love story of hockey rivals-turned-lovers Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov, based on the sixth novel of Rachel Reid’s Game Changer series, The Long Game. The Game Changer series comprises hockey romance novels set in a shared universe with interconnected character narratives.
Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie will reprise their lead roles in the television adaptation.
The first season of the show covered the first two books of Reid’s series, Game Changer and Heated Rivalry.
With the introduction of the new cast, it is likely that the third novel in the series, Tough Guy, will also be adapted. Vanessa and Tarek are acquaintances of Fabian Salah, the love interest of hockey player Ryan Price in Tough Guy.
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