In 2025, HBO Max released a critically acclaimed series based on a popular book, and it has the potential to be a major television event for years to come. Hollywood increasingly relies on adapting existing books – rather than just reviving old shows or rebooting franchises – as a source of fresh ideas. Many of today’s biggest hits started as novels, including Prime Video’s Reacher, CBS’s Tracker, and the upcoming new Harry Potter series also coming to HBO Max later this year. Interestingly, romance is becoming an increasingly popular genre for these adaptations.
The popularity of shows like Netflix’s Bridgerton and Prime Video’s Off Campus demonstrates a growing appetite for book adaptations, and Heated Rivalry is a perfect example of how to do them well. Originally created for Crave, the show found a wider audience after being picked up by HBO Max. Based on Rachel Reid’s novel of the same name, Heated Rivalry tells the story of Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov, two professional hockey rivals who secretly fall in love over several years.
HBO Max’s first season of Heated Rivalry was a success with both critics and viewers, averaging 10.6 million U.S. viewers per episode, according to Warner Bros. Discovery. The show proved popular even with people who hadn’t read the original books. Creator Jacob Tierney skillfully blended faithfulness to the source material with creative changes, making the series engaging for both book fans and newcomers.
How Heated Rivalry Can Run For At Least Five Seasons
Following the quick popularity of Heated Rivalry, HBO Max and Crave have renewed the show for a second season. This aligns with the original book series, where Shane and Ilya’s story continued in The Long Game. It’s worth noting that their romance is part of a larger world created by Reid through the Game Changers books, which featured different couples. But according to creator Tierney, season 2 of Heated Rivalry will continue to focus on Shane and Ilya as the main characters.
With its creative team staying on board, Heated Rivalry is expected to remain popular and will have content for a third season thanks to Reid’s upcoming book, Unrivaled. Tierney and his team could even extend the series further – potentially up to five seasons – by adapting both The Long Game and Unrivaled into two-season arcs each. This would allow them to fully explore the characters and their stories.
The second book is significantly more complex and emotionally charged than the first, so splitting it into multiple seasons for adaptation makes sense. As the relationship between Shane and Ilya deepens and becomes more mature, the adaptation of ‘Unrivaled’ could also benefit from a similar approach, given its own increasing complexity.
Heated Rivalry is available to stream on HBO Max.
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2026-06-14 19:40