Heated Rivalry Season 2 Adds Kevin Zegers, Paul Gross, and Milla Jovovich to Its Cast

It seems the Heated Rivalry fandom is on a roll, because Crave is back with another casting announcement fresh from the press. And honestly? We are not complaining. The globally anticipated second season of our favorite gay hockey drama just keeps getting bigger and bigger, and today we have three more names joining the already very stacked cast.

Crave has announced that Kevin Zegers, Paul Gross, and Milla Jovovich are joining Heated Rivalry Season 2, and we’re particularly excited about the characters they’re stepping into. But who are they playing, you ask? Well, let’s get into it.

First up, Kevin Zegers will play the one and only Coach Wiebe, the head coach of the Ottawa Centaurs. If you’re familiar with Rachel Reid’s Game Changers books, you already know that the Centaurs are about to become a much bigger part of our lives. With Ilya Rozanov (Connor Storrie), Troy Barrett (Charlie Gillespie), Luca Haas (Edvin Ryding), and Wyatt Hayes (Robert Naylor) all joining the Ottawa team in Season 2, we’re finally getting to see more of the gayest team in the MHL brought to life. And yes, we’re very curious to see what Zegers does with Coach Wiebe.

Then there’s Paul Gross, who will play Commissioner Roger Crowell. And, well, we’re already preparing to dislike him. For anyone who hasn’t read the books or doesn’t follow hockey particularly closely, the commissioner is essentially the highest-ranking executive in a professional hockey league, overseeing the league’s business, rules, and operations on behalf of the team owners. In the Heated Rivalry universe, Crowell becomes a particularly important representation of the league’s resistance to change. He is happy to talk about inclusivity when it looks good, but his actions make it very clear how much work there is still to do when it comes to making hockey genuinely welcoming to everyone.

Last but certainly not least, Milla Jovovich is joining the cast as Dr. Galina Molchalina, Ilya’s therapist. This one has us especially intrigued. Galina plays an important role in Ilya’s journey throughout The Long Game, and bringing that relationship to the screen gives us a chance to see another side of Ilya as he works through everything happening in his personal and professional life. We cannot wait to see Jovovich and Storrie bring that dynamic to life.

These three new additions join the cast we already know and adore, led by Hudson Williams as Shane Hollander and Connor Storrie as Ilya Rozanov. They also join previously announced Season 2 newcomers Justice Smith as Harris Drover, Charlie Gillespie as Troy Barrett, Emily Hampshire as Vanessa, Edvin Ryding as Luca Haas, Robert Naylor as Wyatt Hayes, Sabrina Jalees as Farah Jalali, Priyanka as Tarek, Daniel Diemer as Ryan Price, and Shaheen Jafargholi as Fabian Salah.

And, of course, plenty of familiar faces from Season 1 are returning as well, including Sophie Nélisse, Ksenia Daniela Kharlamova, François Arnaud, Robbie G.K., Christina Chang, Dylan Walsh, Callan Potter, Benjamin Roy, and Kamilla Kowal. In other words, Season 2 is shaping up to be a pretty massive expansion of the Game Changers universe, while still keeping the characters we’ve already fallen in love with firmly in the picture.

The second season is currently in production and is expected to premiere in Spring 2027, with the series set to continue expanding Rachel Reid’s interconnected hockey world. And considering Crave still has plenty of faces left to introduce, we’ll be keeping a very close eye on whatever news comes out of Heated Rivalry headquarters next.

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Heated Rivalry Season 2 is set to premiere in Spring 2027. Season 1 of Heated Rivalry is available to stream on Crave (Canada), HBO Max (U.S. & Other Regions), Sky (New Zealand, UK), and Movistar Plus+ (Spain). Follow us on X and Instagram for all queer stuff!

Featured Image: Image Courtesy of Crave and HBO Max.