Heated Rivalry star Kaden Connors breaks his silence on Sasha’s return in season 2 (EXCLUSIVE)
"Even in season one, technically he wasn't even in the Heated Rivalry book," said Connors
By Aaron Sugg
Kaden Connors teased his return as Sasha in Heated Rivalry series 2 at BFI Flare this week, starring as Jovi in the queer dark comedy Lunar Sway.
Connors rocketed to international stardom in his role as Sasha in Jacob Tierney‘s gay hockey romance series, playing the former lover of Ilya Rozanov (Connor Storrie).
The Canadian actor quickly stole viewers’s hearts after his brief appearance in the show, leaving fans wondering: will Sasha make a return in Heated Rivalry series 2?
“I was raised with a pretty religious upbringing” – Kaden Connors on initially auditioning for Ilya Rozanov in Heated Rivalry
Speaking exclusively to Attitude, Connors spoke about initially auditioning for the role of Ilya, saying his own conservative upbringing drew him to the character.
“Ilya is a very interesting character because he has quite a strict conservative family and background. I mean, he’s coming from Russia,” said Connors.
“I was raised with a pretty religious upbringing, kind of in a conservative world. So there was a lot of relatability there already,” he explained.
Is Sasha in Rachel Reid’s Heated Rivalry book series?
After he auditioned for the Heated Rivalry Russian heartthrob, he ended up landing the role of Sasha, who, unlike Storrie’s and Hudson Williams‘s roles, was not named in Rachel Reid‘s book series on which the show is based.
Sasha is only mentioned in passing in the Heated Rivalry book, though he is established as an unnamed sexual partner from Ilya’s past.
“When I auditioned for Ilya, I think they just saw Sasha,” said Connors. “That’s the interesting thing about auditions, they’re always going to be different. Every person’s gonna bring a piece of them to them that way.”
Will Sasha make a return to the Heated Rivalry universe?
Back to the point that is on everybody’s lips: is Sasha making a return to the Heated Rivalry universe? “We can expect him to, but we don’t know,” teased Connors.
“Even in season one, technically he wasn’t even in the Heated Rivalry book,” he continued. “So that’s something that Jacob kind of took initiative on.”
“He expanded on the storyline and brought new characters in. So same thing in The Long Game. Like Sasha’s not typically… but he can be.”
How to watch Heated Rivalry series 2 in the UK
Series 2 will be modelled on Reid’s book The Long Game, continuing to follow Ilya’s and Shane Hollander’s love story, roughly 10 years into their relationship.
Heated Rivalry series 2 has been confirmed to stream on Sky and NOW in the UK, following its renewal for a second season set for release next spring.
Previous episodes, including the one starring Connors, are available to watch now in the UK via the streamers above.