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00:03Hudson Williams
00:09and Connor Story
00:18Congratulations
00:19Thank you
00:22Thank you
00:22I was listening, watching the audience reactions
00:27they were squealing
00:29panting, laughing
00:32at all the right times
00:33If you're panting at the wrong time
00:36see a doctor
00:37and if you're laughing at the wrong
00:40times, ouch
00:43Jacob
00:43I'm going to start with you
00:45so you listened to
00:47Rachel Reid's
00:49Game Changers series on audiobook
00:51then you reached
00:54out to acquire the rights
00:56I did
00:56I followed her on Instagram
00:58I slid into her DMs
01:00I followed her on Instagram
01:01she followed me back
01:02and then we started
01:03we started chatting
01:04So from then to now
01:06Yeah
01:07You wanting to adapt
01:08the book
01:09to now
01:10How does it feel?
01:12How are you?
01:12You good?
01:13Great, I'm good. Are you good?
01:14Yes, I feel good
01:15It's great
01:16Yeah, it's crazy
01:19It's
01:20This show
01:21that was three summers ago
01:24How does math work?
01:25That was
01:27the first season of the Traders
01:29that's how I can remember it
01:31I was on set on the
01:32season one of the Traders Canada
01:33so it was two summers ago
01:34and that's when I
01:36I followed Rachel on Instagram
01:38so in TV language that is
01:41like lightning speed
01:42it's very very very fast
01:46and I am very happy
01:49I'm very tired
01:50and I'm very overwhelmed
01:53So what was it about Shane and Ilya's story
01:56Holonoff that made you want to start here?
01:59I mean
02:01it's
02:02it's the I
02:03I mean
02:03I love the books
02:05I love them all
02:06Rachel you know I do
02:07and
02:08Heated Rivalry
02:09it's the
02:10iconic one
02:11and I think it's the iconic one for a reason
02:14it doesn't follow
02:16a lot of the normal tropes of a romance novel
02:20and
02:21they're
02:22I mean Rachel's writing is so good in general
02:25but these
02:25these characters are so well written
02:27they're so alive
02:28they're funny
02:29their dynamic is interesting
02:31you care about them
02:32and then fundamentally there's something incredibly sweet about the fact that they meet
02:37when they're rookies
02:38and
02:39the whole show
02:40spoilers takes place over eight years
02:42and it's like
02:43it's this long
02:45smutty
02:46love story
02:46but ultimately they're each other's first love
02:49which is
02:49ultimately really
02:50sweet
02:51and
02:52very conservative
02:53and very romantic
02:54and I
02:55and I like that
02:56Let me come back to the smutty in a minute
02:59Hudson
02:59let's talk about Shane
03:00he is between the two characters
03:02more reserved
03:03and in the book
03:04you know
03:06we learn about him through the inner monologue
03:08right?
03:09the expectations placed on him
03:10his worries
03:12his frustration
03:13so how did you
03:14bring all that emotion to life
03:16from the page?
03:18a good director
03:19a good writer
03:21I think it came down to
03:25I think letting the fans in
03:27it started with Jacob's scripts
03:28and that was a lot
03:30clearly he was
03:31he was always going through something
03:32and then reading the book
03:35he means
03:36he means shade
03:36not me
03:37yeah
03:38clearly Jacob was always going through something
03:40it was always a new thing
03:41on sad new neuroses
03:42and he just
03:43take us
03:43take it out on us
03:44hate it here
03:46no, no
03:47but then
03:48Rachel also
03:50her book
03:51like
03:52gave so much more inner monologue
03:53that I wasn't thinking
03:54when I read those scenes
03:55in the script
03:57and then
03:58I made the great choice
03:59to go on twitter
04:00and reddit
04:01and everywhere
04:01just to get everyone's opinion
04:03on Shane
04:04because I wanted to bring it all in
04:07and then they had so many opinions
04:10and so many ideas
04:11of what he was going through
04:13in these moments
04:13and what he was thinking
04:14and how he must have felt
04:16and so
04:17at first I was like
04:18fuck
04:18sorry, do I choose one of these?
04:20um
04:21and then I never did
04:22and it was always
04:23so many things rattling around
04:25in my brain
04:25and I never made a choice
04:28and hopefully
04:29it just worked
04:31and if it didn't
04:33I'm so sorry
04:35yeah
04:36that's my answer
04:39Connor
04:40Ilya's
04:42charismatic
04:45he has a more
04:46he's charismatic
04:47and like assertive exterior
04:49kind of conceals a vulnerability
04:51so what was it
04:53that clicked for you
04:54in understanding
04:55who he is?
04:56understanding who he is
04:57underneath the
04:58the sort of exterior
04:59however you want to
05:01interpret that question
05:02and whether or not
05:02you went on reddit too
05:03I don't know
05:04yeah
05:04um I did not
05:07um
05:08no I mean honestly
05:09it was very
05:10his character is pretty
05:11straightforward for me
05:12actually
05:13um
05:13if you look at his circumstances
05:15based on
05:16not only heated rivalry
05:17but also long game
05:19but we'll stick to heated rivalry
05:20um
05:20his background is so specific
05:22that you kind of
05:24can't help but
05:25have a really distinct idea
05:26of what that person looks like
05:28you know
05:28coming from Russia
05:29um
05:30being secretly bisexual
05:32or
05:33you know
05:33and and having already
05:35come to terms with that
05:36having
05:38you know
05:39a
05:39shitty brother
05:40having a
05:42you know
05:42dead mom
05:43having an Alzheimer's
05:44ridden father
05:45being a professional hockey player
05:47like it's also
05:47so specific
05:48that you kind of
05:49can't help but
05:50um
05:51I don't know
05:52have an idea of what that must feel like
05:53and what that must be like
05:54so I think the pressure is just on
05:56and he kind of
05:56runs from it
05:58with that exterior
05:59you both do such a great job
06:02playing
06:02your respective characters
06:04but then of course
06:05it's the chemistry between Shane and Ilya
06:08I mean
06:09I believed
06:11every finger touch
06:13every kiss
06:18I told you only when we're paying you
06:22you don't get it for free
06:23you don't get it for free
06:24you don't get it for free
06:25I'm sure everyone else here did too
06:28every charged gaze
06:31all of that
06:32so
06:33how did you build this relationship
06:36off screen
06:37to
06:37to bring it
06:39on screen
06:40to this point
06:41we've
06:42gotten this question
06:43a lot
06:44I know
06:44and I want to hear it again
06:46yeah
06:46and I think that
06:48every time I answer it
06:49I'm just
06:49it's the same thing
06:50and it just
06:51makes me realize it even more
06:53I mean
06:54I think we just have
06:55very compatible energies
06:56and I think we're both
06:57very bold
06:59and kind of
07:00we're game to get
07:01like intimate
07:02and vulnerable
07:03and get two inches from each other's face
07:05and we're both comfortable with that
07:07and when you have someone who matches that energy
07:09it just becomes
07:09you know
07:10even more kinetic
07:12yeah
07:12match our freak
07:13match our freak
07:14match our freak
07:15and I also think
07:16we just have
07:17an ability to look like fools
07:19and try a bunch of things
07:20that Jacob hates
07:23and I think a lot of that is like
07:24just given options
07:25you know
07:26just try this
07:27try that
07:28you know
07:28give like Shane a nervous tick
07:30and then
07:30he's like we'll leave that
07:31on the editing room floor
07:32and then just all shaped up
07:34nice and dandy
07:35but we have that ability
07:37thank you
07:37to
07:38thank you for hearing
07:40to just try stuff
07:40he loves it
07:43I know you know
07:44the fans of this book
07:46are very intense
07:47about this book
07:49and this
07:51relationship
07:52um
07:52and they're
07:54they care very much
07:55about signature scenes
07:57tuna melt
07:59Russian phone call
08:01confession scene
08:03all of that
08:04it's all gonna be there
08:04so
08:06was there a scene in particular
08:08Jacob
08:09that you were most excited to tackle
08:11or more nervous
08:13or
08:14whatever
08:16I haven't answered this version of this yet
08:18you know what was exciting for me to write
08:21was
08:22uh
08:22the scene on the phone from Russia
08:24because
08:25it's not
08:26kind of
08:27it's
08:27I mean obviously it's in the book
08:29but it's not written what he's actually saying
08:30so I wrote him a whole
08:33fucking very long
08:35uh
08:35monologue
08:36and um
08:37and that was fun
08:38it was really fun to do that
08:39it was fun to
08:41uh
08:42add more Svetlana
08:43it was kind of fun to help build a bit more of the world out
08:46um
08:48I took great pleasure in that
08:49while I hope and think honoring the like
08:52the spirit of the
08:53the story
08:53uh
08:54I was very aware of the tuna melt
08:56I was very aware of the cottage
09:00uh
09:01I was
09:02there's a lot that I
09:03I mean yeah
09:03like they're big moments for me too
09:05I'm a fan
09:05like I wanted to do them
09:07to do them all
09:08I mean a lot of them are in that
09:09like
09:09that
09:10the Vegas rooftop is like
09:12huge
09:13um
09:14and so is that shower
09:16so I mean there's so much that is like
09:18so
09:18I mean that's what's so great about this book
09:21is that it kind of hops from these incredibly memorable scenes to another incredibly memorable scene
09:27Hudson and Connor
09:28Hudson and Connor is there a scene that you predict fans will lose it over once it airs
09:35I'm very bad at gauging that now
09:37because
09:37like recently the the gym scene was released
09:40I was like oh that's pretty tame
09:42people might just be like oh that's cute
09:44but they just were feral
09:46and frothy
09:46and
09:46so I am just a horrible
09:50horrible gauge for everything
09:52clearly
09:52um
09:54but hopefully all of it
09:55I hope they just you know
09:56I'm trying to think of other iconic moments from the book
09:59that
09:59um
10:00will become
10:01that'll come to life like that
10:03like highlight points
10:04oh
10:05I hope the
10:05a scene
10:06can I spoil
10:07um
10:07the scene
10:10does it spoil anything?
10:13there is a whole book out there
10:15no it's fine
10:15I like
10:16but there are things that
10:17yeah yeah
10:18I think you're talking about the scene
10:20uh
10:21before
10:22this Vegas hotel room
10:24in the bathroom
10:25yep
10:25that's the one
10:26do you mean?
10:27yes it is
10:27uh yeah that's a great scene
10:30that's an episode
10:30that's an episode too
10:31and I hope it
10:32makes them
10:33wait wait wait
10:34I don't know what we're talking about
10:36after
10:36after you guys present
10:37most uh
10:38oh yeah
10:39yes
10:40there's a
10:41there's a
10:42like a hard to find vodka involved
10:44yes
10:45that's later
10:45no I mean
10:46that seems great
10:46that seems great
10:47that's in Vegas right?
10:49very long
10:49the scene before though
10:51that that's like
10:52when they're discussed
10:53when they have a
10:54they kind of have a fight
10:54post awards
10:55a fight
10:56so it's not that hot and heavy
10:58but it's um
10:59it's hot and heavy
11:00yeah
11:04you are the stars of the show
11:07but of course
11:08it wouldn't be complete
11:10without your colleagues
11:11without your co-stars
11:12a few of them are here tonight right?
11:15Dylan Walsh
11:16Dylan Walsh
11:17Tina Chong
11:17oh my god
11:19Senya Daniella
11:20we have so many other
11:21one
11:22Callan Potters here
11:23uh with Hayden
11:24whoo
11:25whoo
11:25whoo
11:26I know he matters a lot to you
11:28uh
11:29and we have
11:30not with us
11:31Sophie Nellis
11:31who plays Rose
11:32and Francois Arnault
11:33obviously plays Scott Hunter
11:35and all kinds of other
11:37brilliant talented actors
11:38all over the place
11:39and yeah
11:40it's a great cast
11:42we were very lucky
11:45oh
11:46was there
11:47no I don't want you to
11:48wait
11:48what were you supposed to say that?
11:50was there a question in there?
11:51I wanted you to talk about your co-stars
11:53and working with the ensemble cast
11:55and what that meant to you
11:56oh
11:56it was fantastic
11:58I
12:00it was
12:01um
12:01and I think
12:03just you know
12:04you haven't met these people
12:05they're
12:06they're playing
12:06people you need to have chemistry with
12:08they already come in with this kind of expectation of
12:11a relationship
12:12and
12:13I think us sort of
12:15overwhelmed
12:16by just everyone having the best attitude
12:18um
12:19and just being so friendly
12:21and
12:22really
12:23careful
12:24with
12:25with the
12:25their characters and the text
12:27and they really cared
12:28none of it felt like they were just kind of showing up
12:30to do a
12:31a paycheck
12:32or something
12:33they were
12:33they were in it
12:34to win it
12:35and we were both in
12:36we were both in very new circumstances
12:39I mean me not speaking Russian
12:40and not playing hockey
12:42Hudson also not playing hockey
12:43it was really great because
12:45we can
12:45also can't speak Russian
12:46fun fun
12:47but can speak Russian
12:48I can do Russian
12:50come on
12:50thank you
12:51that's
12:52no
12:53that's my thing
12:54um
12:56um
12:57but I mean we were in a lot of scenarios where
12:59you know
13:00we're kind of
13:01out there and we really need some help and assistance
13:02and it was great
13:03I mean
13:04um
13:04Alexey my brother is here
13:06um
13:07also
13:09um
13:09Dania
13:10who plays Svetlana
13:11like I mean
13:12it was just great to have people who actually know
13:14and they were so incredibly supportive and that was so nerve-wracking
13:17everyone who helped us do um
13:20all things hockey were so supportive
13:22like
13:23it's so scary to show up
13:25and like
13:25not look like an idiot
13:27and then look like an idiot
13:29and someone be like
13:30you don't look that bad
13:31it's like
13:32is
13:33is a really great experience
13:34on and editing around you looking like an idiot
13:37hearing your directors say that you had to edit around you
13:41you know
13:42there's a lot of hurtful possibilities here
13:44they did a really
13:44they did a very good job with the hockey
13:45I think we should also
13:46uh
13:47I don't know even if she made it tonight
13:48but our
13:49intimacy coordinator
13:50Chayla Hunter
13:51she is here
13:51I saw her
13:52where is she
13:54that's nice to hear
13:57a hero
13:58uh
13:59a hero
13:59this show would not have been what it was without her
14:01and uh
14:02just made it an enormous
14:04there's obviously
14:06I mean this was essentially a full-time job for Chayla
14:08as you can imagine
14:09she was there almost every day
14:10um
14:11and
14:12we
14:14the
14:14the way that that
14:15you know that was something
14:17uh
14:18frankly I'm just
14:18inventing my own questions now Eleni sorry
14:20I
14:21my next question was about getting smutty and horny
14:23let's get dirty
14:24like tell me about the horny and the smutty
14:26I've never shot a lot
14:27I've shot sex scenes before
14:29as a director
14:30and as an actor
14:31but
14:31to this extent
14:32and this elaborate
14:33and this volume
14:34where it was such a part of the language of the show
14:36and we
14:37we rehearsed them
14:38uh at the very beginning of the
14:40but
14:40with Chayla
14:41but then
14:42having her there and her input
14:44it was
14:45it was
14:46uh
14:47it just
14:48she helped us all have a language where we could just become so comfortable with it
14:52and
14:53obviously as you can imagine by the end
14:55it was like oh my god
14:56put on a robe
14:57like they're so
14:58they're too comfortable
14:59we had to remind like the nudity stuff is also for the crew like you have to put on clothes
15:03um
15:05and uh
15:06but like
15:06the level of facilitation
15:09and
15:10what it gave us
15:13we have to do so much with the sex in the show because the sex is about character
15:17right you
15:17their connection changes
15:19they start off so young
15:20they get to be 25
15:21they realize they're in love like that
15:23that the sex can't be static
15:24and it's boring
15:26we all love smut
15:27but like
15:28it's boring if it's the same thing over and over again
15:30you don't want to see that
15:31you want to see something different
15:32you want it to feel different
15:33to have a different level of engagement
15:35you really are learning about this relationship through it
15:37so to have chayla as an ally
15:39as a
15:40as a
15:41as a guide
15:42throughout this was just amazing
15:43and i know that
15:44uh the boys loved her too
15:45thank you for your work
15:47thank you for your work
15:48thank you for your work
15:50thank you for your work
15:51my husband thanks you for your work
15:54um
15:58is he wait is he also watching the show and he's like
16:01so
16:04listen it's not about me
16:05he introduced you to eat the driver
16:06it's not about me
16:07but here's how i'll sell the show to people
16:09he dropped me off at the train station this morning
16:12and i was like i am so excited tonight
16:14fucking going to moderate this gay hot romance show
16:18and i'm so horny about it
16:21and he was like show me a scene
16:24i showed him a scene and he was like
16:26all right
16:28he was like i'm coming on the train with you
16:30he was like
16:31he was like can't wait for you to get home
16:34and i'm like you better wait up
16:37um
16:37anyway
16:38all right
16:39so uh
16:40thank you for
16:41that's the right answer
16:42that's the right answer
16:44everybody
16:44um
16:45jacob
16:47switching gears a little bit
16:49no
16:50please
16:52um
16:53you said in a recent interview
16:55that it was really
16:56that you wanted to maintain
16:58shane hollander's cultural identity
17:00yeah of course
17:01that you did not want to whitewash this character in this sport
17:04can you talk about why that was important to you
17:08um
17:08yeah i mean i for i guess kind of for me for the obvious reasons
17:12there are not a lot of
17:15there are not a lot of people who are not white in the nhl
17:18and there are not a lot of people who are not white as leads in romances either
17:25and so that was a huge part of it and i think it's a lot about i i think it
17:31it's it's a lot about shane's personality um is that he is this kind of outsider and i think there's
17:38something very interesting that happens when you read a book and your character's name is shane hollander that your brain
17:44can whitewash him in a really easy way and uh there was never a question to me like this character
17:49had to be uh asian and i think it just brings something much more interesting to me and i think
17:55it just brings a lot of
17:55interesting to the story besides just honoring what's in the book i mean like it was never a question because
17:59in the book like i wouldn't question that period but then i also wanted to and we talked about this
18:05i wanted to address it like i wanted him to talk about it a little bit because there aren't
18:10besides and this show is not nick suzuki fan fiction uh rachel reed will tell you that though it because
18:18and it's not it was published before he was the captain of the habs but like the fact that there
18:22is a half asian captain of the montreal hockey team right now aside there are not that many asian characters
18:28there are many asian players in hockey and so i thought like that is it just makes the whole thing
18:34more interesting and yeah it would be monstrous just to make
18:38him white well as you said yeah a confession i'll tell you something admit it to you okay i was
18:45just chatting now right no when i was reading the book even though i am of east asian background yeah
18:51shane hollander in my mind right was not asian yeah even as an east asian person yeah so i really
18:59appreciate this effort and so to you hudson what does it mean to you coming from your background to be
19:06able to play this character in this story
19:07that so many people are going to see it means a lot um my mom told me at one point
19:14that uh when i wanted i told her i was going to be an actor she said it it scared
19:19her because um she thought her being an asian lady that it would kind of limit my possibilities for roles
19:26i could get because she hadn't really seen um people uh like her um on the screen and then when
19:34i booked a role due to
19:35the fact there was a prerequisite that i am half asian um i think it just kind of
19:44made her see that things are changing and there are new possibilities so that really felt amazing
19:58the majority of the fans of this book are women and queer and this show serves that audience prioritizes that
20:09audience as a part of this team
20:14how do you feel to be part of a show that prioritizes an audience that is often neglected underserved
20:23how do i how do i feel you personally yeah yeah i mean i i i've said this before i
20:30feel like
20:30getting into niche specific human experiences whether it's um shane being you know half asian or ilia being
20:42a foreigner both of them being queer i think getting into these really niche specific human experiences
20:49actually really give you a chance to open up and let people connect you know if it was super generic
20:55then it's kind of like it's so vanilla that there's kind of nothing to stick you know i was
21:00really surprised when i found out that most of the demographics of people who um love rachel's books
21:06um are predominantly women um because i think on the surface you would think you know mm romance and
21:12you would think men um i think i think those two communities just really relate to the feeling of
21:20being i'm in a box that box says i can be a b or c and i feel capable of
21:27more than that and i think
21:28these two characters feel that way you know living in the gray on some level feeling like what's expected
21:34of me what the world wants for me and what i am or not always cohesive so and i definitely
21:39relate to
21:40that too you know so it feels very good to to be in that conversation it's also just way more
21:45interesting to i think appeal to that than you know middle middle middle america or something you
21:53know this ain't the taylor sheridan universe thank you um i guess that i do have a show called land
22:02man
22:04it's gonna be land man oil man truck man it's so filthy um you mentioned mm fiction right huge on
22:12tiktok
22:12a book talk sorry um bl boys love is exploding in popularity in the eastern markets in broadcast but
22:22we haven't seen shows the books yes but the shows in the western market really take off you are leading
22:31a movement you are i think i agree no i think uh i think that what we've seen is a
22:38lot of it skewing ya
22:39in the west right and i think i've said this a bunch of times like i would love to be
22:44a gay 14
22:45year old or 15 year old now like to have to have grown up with heart stopper and young royals
22:50and
22:50all these like they're wonderful they're also for young people so they're sexually neutered and i think
22:56that this is that for grown-ups um because we get to have our fun too and as cool as
23:03it is to
23:04wait six episodes for people to hold hands it's also fun to watch them bang
23:11we do that bang bang bang bang bang okay yeah so that's what this show but i think that like
23:18i think that that's that that's the part that besides uh uh happy endings uh that's what gay
23:25people really don't get i didn't even mean it that way i get it i hear it uh but like
23:31yeah we
23:32don't get happy endings and we don't get to see ourselves have satisfying sex we get like kind of
23:37like dirty secret trysts and then we get it's like you know that's that was the joy of this show
23:44to me
23:44and of rachel's books and getting to explore this world was just that these is this is a just a
23:49complete love story about two people who uh yeah who are obsessed with each other can't stop
23:56fucking and then realize they're in love fucking is great agreed amen um all right we have three
24:03minutes left so we're gonna do a lightning round ready it's just one pop song okay ready who breaks
24:09character first who i have what was the question who breaks character first hudson hudson i'm always
24:15character you don't get to say that who's most like their character sophie sophie sophie yes yeah
24:27not francois
24:32okay so
24:34lightning round yes
24:36chain and ilia's couple name is holonov no it's shalia it's a holonov
24:40oh shalia or holonov
24:47i won i lost i won
24:50shalia is no no no okay okay um
24:55shalia sounds like a thing you have
24:59um so how do we combine connor story and hudson williams
25:11that's the front of both of them that doesn't make any sense
25:15well y'all decide i'm not gonna shit myself
25:19hudson
25:19hudson
25:24hudson williams
25:25oh this is your idea this is a thing i'm asking okay okay what was it hudcon is the
25:31hudcon
25:31hudcon we didn't agree to that okay we're at hudcon five
25:38what is shane and ilia's theme song
25:42um i really want
25:44no i'm not gonna say
25:46i want i really i really want um ilia at some point to sing um that tattoo song remember
25:53all of what you said all the things you said
25:58that's a russian
25:59that's like a lesbian russian group they're super sick
26:02tattoo t-a-t-u
26:03t-a-t-u yep
26:04i think i think we'll do that
26:07um
26:09you get a say
26:09yeah it's up literally it's my say it's up to me
26:13they don't get a say
26:14right well say
26:16i think when you have seen the show
26:18you'll see there are some featured songs
26:20and i would guess that it is between my moon my man by feist
26:25and i'll believe in anything by wolf parade
26:28okay that's cute i'll take this one um i'm thinking the rocky theme song maybe
26:33i'm gonna fly now
26:34you know i think it could score everything
26:37i would do anything for love but i won't do that
26:39me and love
26:44which castmate would be the worst in an actual hockey fight
26:49francois or no
26:52worst meaning do the most damage
26:54any of you
26:54any of you
26:55or lose the hardest
26:56however you want to answer
26:57hudson hudson used to do mma right
27:00yeah so hudson used to do mma so he would win
27:03yeah i would cry
27:05yeah francois would
27:07would run
27:08also cry
27:09yeah
27:09and then francois and i would cry together
27:12and have a competition over that
27:14you can cry harder
27:15okay before i let you go final question you heard what justin stockman said earlier
27:19there are more books
27:21yeah
27:22so have you been thinking about more
27:24oh yeah
27:25how far along are you on the more
27:28you've shot every single one
27:30i'll tell you what i'm not i'm not as far as i'm not as far as justin would like me
27:35to be
27:35so uh but listen
27:39if if literally justin wants more seasons that's up to it
27:44yeah yeah fuck yeah let's do it
27:46we yes i do have a plan
27:47i have a plan
27:49okay help us make that happen
27:52remember heated rivalry premieres on crave on friday
27:56tell everyone i know you've seen it but watch it again on social media
28:00all of that
28:01there's two episodes on friday and then episode as of next friday
28:04tell everyone who will like i did with my husband
28:09tell lady's husband
28:12remind him where she is
28:13thank you all of you
28:16thank you
28:16congratulations
28:20thank you
28:22remember to tell everyone
28:23on crave on heated rivalry
28:25friday thank you goodnight
28:31and
28:35say it everybody
28:36hot hot story
28:57oh and rachel
29:16well yeah rachel i want to start with you
29:28so how do you
29:30did this start
29:31with you
29:33the books or the show
29:34the books
29:36the books
29:36it started with me at my dining room table just getting struck with
29:40i don't know just these two characters just appeared in my head and i just immediately
29:43sat down and wrote what became the prologue of the book
29:46because one sitting so
29:49and then it just went from there
29:51and are you a hockey fan
29:53yes
29:54okay it starts there
29:57very very young
29:58and the relationship between the two guys
30:03was that just something that popped into your head
30:07yeah i just thought it would be funny
30:14okay so
30:14that's when i as a comedy writer
30:18read it and was like oh fuck this is sick
30:22it's a rock
30:23but i really so i was sitting over there
30:26and that group of girls
30:31i really do want to know though
30:33what is it because watching this
30:36you guys it's
30:38it's better than 50 shades of gray for you guys
30:40this is huge and i actually
30:43i'm not going to ask any questions of the audience
30:46but i do need to know
30:47will one person here tell me
30:48what it is about this
30:51that really makes
30:53the camera free
30:54the camera free
30:55the camera free
30:55the camera free
30:55just human connection is really important
30:57especially like for queer people
30:59yeah
31:00it's just like that connection is so important
31:12what i'm interested in is because it's hot and it's two guys
31:17and it's just
31:19it is so hot for you guys
31:22you are embarrassed
31:23you are like
31:26i'm slapping myself
31:27because i haven't
31:28shoved myself up
31:33no i couldn't
31:34i couldn't
31:34i was somewhere there
31:36okay but i want to ask you
31:37um
31:37so when did this come into your life
31:41so
31:41yeah
31:42so during the pandemic
31:44i started listening to audible
31:45and this was one of the first books
31:47i mean that's true
31:48i'm a big reader
31:49and i never listen to audible
31:50and i have friends be like
31:51you listen to podcasts
31:52like
31:52and i couldn't read
31:53nobody else remembers this
31:55i could not finish a book
31:56i was like
31:56why is my attention span so short
31:58so i started listening
31:59and the first thing i did was listen to these books
32:01and i loved them
32:02and then i did a pretty big deep dive into the genre
32:06in which i discovered that
32:08i was writing some of these are
32:11rachel's a real writer
32:12and her books are funny and smart and genuine
32:16and
32:17the connections between the characters are real
32:19i agree with you
32:20like there's something
32:21and not
32:22you know
32:22romance is a largely
32:25uncritically
32:27reviewed genre
32:28and so to learn what's good at it
32:30you just have to kind of listen or read
32:31you have to participate in it
32:32and i
32:33i listen to a lot
32:34and i can never shake the books
32:35um
32:36i love them
32:37and then
32:38as i kind of saw them get a bit more into the mainstream
32:41it was really
32:42i said
32:42i feel like i was going to say this time
32:44this washington post article
32:45and i was just like
32:45oh my god
32:46if somebody else options these
32:48i think i'll feel crazy
32:49and so i was like
32:51brendan
32:52brady
32:52sitting there
32:53who deserves a lot of credit for this
32:56and
32:58i think so
32:59what we like to say now
33:03is we were trying to be
33:05like a low budget comedy company
33:07and then we turned into a premium smut company
33:13i like our origin story
33:15i like
33:16i'm assuming it's a villain arc
33:17i'm really excited
33:19well so i would think
33:21and gay sex
33:22would be like snakes on a plane
33:24himself
33:25like people would want this
33:27wasn't that easy
33:28for you guys
33:29to get this made
33:30legendary
33:31three minutes
33:34forgive me
33:36i'm a dream book
33:37we used to be roommates
33:39um
33:41yes
33:41no
33:42i
33:42you know what
33:43i had no idea
33:44we had no idea
33:44like here's the thing that happened
33:46i knew these books were popular
33:47i loved them
33:48i had no idea
33:50prior to that
33:51washington post article
33:52i was not sure
33:53it was adaptable
33:54there's
33:55you've noticed
33:55not a lot of sex
33:57and
33:57but i did
33:59but like
34:01i did
34:01but what happened was
34:03we didn't
34:04i knew i was like
34:05i'm gonna write the first one
34:05and that way
34:06i'm gonna use this
34:07as a proven concept
34:07because i don't
34:08i don't know if people are gonna
34:09i'm gonna get execs to read this book
34:11and as soon as we started talking about it though
34:14brent and i
34:14we would tell people
34:15we were like
34:16oh we're not ready for this
34:17this isn't ready yet
34:18but we have
34:18we optioned this series
34:20gay hockey romances
34:22the level of like
34:23sorry what did you say
34:24the level of like
34:25leaning in
34:26was pretty extraordinary
34:27and then
34:28it didn't
34:29it did not take long
34:30it was way easier
34:31than i thought it would be
34:33that being said
34:34it was quite difficult
34:36initially
34:37we had
34:38we had another
34:39we had an adventure
34:39with another company
34:40and
34:42it was the
34:44but the question
34:45that i was
34:45you know
34:46that i was kind of nervous
34:47with crave too
34:48was just like
34:48you say you want this
34:50but do you
34:51like
34:52do you want this
34:53in theory
34:53and then when you see the scripts
34:55you start seeing the footage
34:56you're like
34:56oh
34:58that's more than we thought
34:59we were getting
35:00for this
35:01and crave did right
35:02have been amazing
35:03the entire way through
35:04but
35:05so once it was
35:06once it happened
35:07and crave was the place
35:08where i've done other tv shows
35:09that i've done larry Kenny with
35:10and so i knew all these people
35:12and
35:13but it was a departure
35:14and it was a big swing for them
35:15because they don't
35:17yeah
35:17because they
35:17they also just don't
35:19they're only recently
35:20starting to do
35:20one or more dramas
35:21at all
35:22and so this was
35:23a big swing
35:24in a lot of ways
35:26i think it worked
35:27yeah
35:28um
35:29so
35:30i want to know
35:31about
35:32how
35:33you found
35:35your boys
35:36um
35:37because
35:38i feel like
35:39that chemistry
35:39so
35:40then i'm going to
35:40ask kate
35:41so i want to
35:42you know what
35:42i'm looking at
35:43you've talked enough
35:44um
35:45i do want to know
35:46what the casting process
35:48was like
35:48for both of you
35:49um
35:50did you
35:50you've been
35:51too long
35:52too long
35:54and it was drawn out
35:55there was like
35:56but
35:57and uh
35:58it was very
35:59straightforward
35:59besides
36:00when you read the script
36:01was that straightforward
36:03like just
36:04you're a wednesday
36:06yeah
36:06i think immediately
36:07as soon as i read the script
36:08i kind of just
36:09fell in love with it
36:10or at least the size
36:11it got sent immediately
36:12it sort of made sense to me
36:14in a way
36:15um
36:16and
36:17i just wanted to do it
36:18and get my hands dirty
36:19and just jump all the way
36:21in there
36:22and never stop
36:23i think for me
36:26is this working
36:27i always had like
36:28an adjustment period
36:29where i'm like
36:30how loud
36:30what kind of
36:31i mean
36:32um
36:32yeah i remember
36:34i remember
36:35the original
36:36uh
36:37breakdown
36:37it was like
36:386'3
36:39russian
36:40bisexual
36:41hockey player
36:43and i was like
36:44i'm not 6'3
36:47i don't speak russian
36:49um
36:51and uh
36:52yeah
36:52so i was like
36:53i'm never gonna get this
36:54this isn't gonna happen
36:55i did it
36:56heard back a month later
36:57and
36:57did like three
36:58three reads
36:59and
37:00yeah
37:03because when i first saw this
37:05i really did not believe
37:07you were not rushing
37:08there we go
37:09i love that
37:10the first iteration of it
37:12that i did was a little bit
37:13more like
37:15this is how we're
37:18that's not true
37:20i've been through the mail
37:23and jake was like
37:25i love it
37:28last change
37:29a fun story about
37:30connor's audition
37:31a friend of ours
37:33a bunch of ours
37:34up here
37:34sarah gatton
37:35a wonderful actress
37:35who did the voiceover
37:36for the rookie of the year award
37:40she watched a bunch of the tapes
37:42and she loved connor so much
37:44this was before hudson had even auditioned
37:46and she said to me
37:47she was like
37:47we have to cast for russian one
37:50that was not russian
37:53so you fooled her
37:55and the blue began
37:59well the chemistry
38:01between them
38:02is palpable
38:03and like so much though
38:04that you saw before
38:05i can't not think of you guys
38:07as shane and ilia
38:08like i refuse to know
38:10your names properly
38:13that was a choice
38:14but how did you
38:16because this feels like
38:17a tall order
38:17to be able to find
38:18these guys
38:19so how
38:19what was that search
38:21like for you
38:23when they did the chemistry
38:24reading it was very obvious
38:25and full disclosure
38:27the chemistry was stacked
38:28for them
38:29and it worked
38:31and then the network
38:33was concerned
38:33that they were too young
38:35and we had another
38:37i think they did another
38:38like take together
38:39where i was like
38:41i was like
38:41i don't even know
38:42what this note
38:43imagine getting this note
38:43i was like
38:44i don't know what this note means
38:45but play it like you're 30
38:48all the stupid fucking things to say
38:51and i was like
38:53play it like you're a bit more tired
38:54and you don't want to play
38:55i think it sounds like a chore
38:5880 sets
39:00do this or
39:03a bit more of that energy
39:05and it worked
39:05and it worked
39:06but yeah
39:07your chemistry read was amazing
39:08from the
39:09from the
39:09like and
39:10yeah it was just very
39:12it became very clear
39:13at least to me
39:14very cordial
39:15um
39:17francois
39:18yeah
39:18francois who i believe
39:20is one of the greatest actors
39:22we have in this country
39:22um
39:29what i love so much
39:30is that
39:31so i've seen
39:31all of this
39:32and
39:34you don't know
39:34what's coming
39:35it's amazing
39:35you might actually
39:36because you've got the books
39:37but what i love
39:40is when your little
39:41like little thumbnail
39:42up there
39:43showed
39:43those girls
39:44were like
39:44please
39:46so
39:46how did
39:48you become
39:49involved in this
39:50um
39:52thank you emily
39:54of course
39:55this isn't working
39:55no
39:57i don't think it was
40:00um
40:00no it's not
40:01uh thank you emily
40:04um well
40:05i've known jacob for
40:06we were counting earlier
40:0717 years now
40:08um
40:09and when he
40:10gave me the call for this
40:12i was unaware of the
40:13rachel reed
40:14gay universe
40:16um
40:16and uh
40:18i know that scott hunter
40:20now is a beloved
40:21character
40:22um
40:26but there was something
40:27to the writing
40:28and i know you only have
40:30just like a tiny little
40:31tease of it
40:32but
40:32there's something
40:33in the writing
40:34of this
40:35um
40:36like alpha
40:38strong
40:38captain america
40:39male
40:40uh
40:41that is just
40:42profoundly
40:42good
40:44uh
40:45and there's something
40:46that really moved me
40:47and there's
40:48um
40:49the words that
40:50jacob found
40:51to express that
40:52range so true
40:54uh
40:55that i was
40:56i just felt like
40:57i had to
40:58save him
40:59at one point
40:59and um
41:01i'm just so glad
41:02to be in such good company
41:03i'm so proud of you
41:04boy
41:06i did hear
41:08from a source
41:09that you wanted to dye your hair bleach blonde
41:12for this
41:13and was that just a character choice
41:15or just
41:15well the character is blonde
41:16with blue eyes in the books
41:17and i knew i was gonna get shit
41:20from the fandom
41:22and i was also blonde
41:23i had just known
41:23the thing is
41:24i had dyed my hair blonde
41:25for another movie
41:26and i was like
41:27can we just use this
41:27man i was kind of tired
41:30uh
41:30and jacob was like
41:31no
41:33so i'm a little
41:33auburn
41:34i don't know
41:35um
41:37rachel
41:37when
41:38just
41:39so having
41:39something of yours
41:40adapted
41:41um
41:42what was that process like
41:44on a
41:45kind of
41:45day-to-day basis
41:47or even emotional
41:49like seeing somebody
41:51interpret
41:52what you've done
41:53yeah
41:54jacob
41:55this is not
41:56i don't do this
41:56every day
41:58ever
42:00it was an absolute dream
42:02from the very first moment
42:04that i
42:04i spoke to jacob
42:06the first time
42:06i like
42:07because you laid out
42:08exactly everything
42:09that was important
42:11about the books
42:12and the characters
42:12that you just got them
42:13right away
42:13so
42:14i never
42:15worried again
42:16after that
42:17because you know
42:17not everybody gets
42:18um
42:19a dream adaptation
42:21and
42:22gets to be this
42:23included
42:24and gets to be
42:25this respected
42:26having their source
42:27material
42:28respected this much
42:29and
42:30i don't know
42:31just thank you
42:46i know that
42:48brendan is
42:49there and not here
42:50but if he was here
42:51would we talk about
42:53the sale to hbo
42:54yeah
42:55yeah
42:56what
42:57can you say in french
42:59oh yeah
43:00uh
43:01i want to tell you
43:02first thank you very much
43:03for coming
43:03all the years
43:05we have been here
43:08we have been here
43:09for francis to pray
43:10of course
43:10we have a new album
43:12for if you want to listen
43:14like that
43:14and i'm just saying in french
43:31they were super happy
43:32the hbo bought the show
43:35for all the reasons i think
43:37it's just as exciting for us
43:38it's fucking crazy
43:39and um
43:40and we're so excited
43:41that it's happening
43:42at the same time
43:43as in canada
43:44and of course our australian
43:45friends
43:46and
43:46i knew it as soon as i read it
43:48that it would sell worldwide
43:50and we would use the same
43:51for the first time
43:55and if you can't
43:57trust the master
44:01uh no
44:02the whole thing has been
44:03you know overwhelming
44:04and i know there's a lot of fans here
44:06and really
44:07we owe so much of this
44:09to you
44:10um
44:11you know we
44:12brendan and i
44:13sold this show
44:14we were like
44:14oh
44:14there's fans
44:17they're gonna show up
44:19and we were like
44:19I fucking hope they do
44:21but i don't know
44:22there's no
44:23obvious road map
44:24and i certainly
44:26uh
44:27never felt anything like
44:28what it
44:28what it's like
44:29to be supported by you guys
44:31Rachel tried to warn me
44:32and
44:33uh
44:33but it's
44:34yeah it's just been
44:35absolutely crazy
44:36and we
44:37i don't
44:38i have
44:38you know people have asked me
44:39did the fans pick this up
44:41i don't know
44:41is the answer
44:42i don't know
44:42but i i know
44:43it did not hurt
44:45that was amazing
44:47and it was amazing
44:48for everybody to see online
44:49but like
44:50wow there's a local
44:51and active
44:52group of people
44:53that want to see the show
44:54and so that's
44:54it's that's crazy
44:56and it's amazing
44:57and it's very gratifying
44:58um
44:59speaking to the fans
45:00i
45:01i
45:01i
45:03one
45:05one small question
45:06so the sex scenes
45:07um
45:10yes
45:12so they were really
45:14fucking hot
45:15like
45:16really hot
45:17and
45:17how was that
45:20i don't want to ask you
45:21how was that
45:22on set
45:23uh
45:24to
45:24to
45:25kind of
45:27you're gonna get asked this a lot
45:28later on
45:29so i'm just
45:30prepping you
45:31just to practice
45:32um
45:32maybe
45:33like
45:34i love
45:34you
45:35no
45:37okay
45:39to be honest
45:40like i don't think Hudson and i are very squeamish or weird about any of that
45:44so
45:46i mean it's one of those things where you know someone else is uncomfortable or you know has a different
45:51way to think about things or has certain boundaries that need to be respected you know it's no boundaries yeah
45:57then it becomes then it becomes a dance right like you know you're always kind of being like is this
46:01okay is this okay
46:03we've kind of from the jump with Jacob and Chayla our intimacy coordinator were like i was like you can
46:09do whatever you want to me however you want to me
46:12and it was kind of vice versa
46:14and so
46:15yeah
46:17if that makes any sense
46:19he's like i'll do anything
46:21let's go
46:22let's get in there
46:34what i'll say is cause
46:37record
46:38we
46:39we
46:40they are
46:41both very comfortable
46:42this show would not be what it is about these two and without the particular chemistry that they have and
46:47their comfort level with each other which was amazing
46:50um
46:51and also a great reminder that some of the on set nudity stuff is actually about the crew
46:56so when you say things like Hudson you have to wear a robe
46:58you can't just walk around like that
47:00walk in lounge
47:02because it's hot in the hotel room
47:04or whatever
47:05it was a living experience for all of us
47:07in some ways
47:09right?
47:10you remember that?
47:10it was so much fun to be in my little ballerina slipper
47:13i know
47:13it was like
47:15it was like
47:16i kept so many of them
47:18i'm not even
47:18i'm not even
47:20but we did
47:24we did have a wonderful intimacy coordinator and you tell off a hunter who really i mean she was really
47:29good on everything and we just part very seriously and we tried to choreograph these sex scenes like dances so
47:36that we were just going through beats and emotions so that we could allow for much like a dance for
47:40like the connect you don't think about the next movement you can just think about the connection and do that
47:45because that was always you know the language of the show with the fave
47:48What fans love, what I love too, is that this is a sexual relationship, and so we can't shy away
47:53from that.
47:54But we also have to make sure that these sex scenes are not just gratuitous sex scenes.
47:58We're learning about these guys, and we're learning about their relationship.
48:01And so it's quite important that they be very specific.
48:03And without specificity, it's not interesting. It's just like a mess of bodies.
48:07And you can see that anywhere, you know?
48:09It's not sexy either. It's not sexy without that. And it is so...
48:13That's intimacy.
48:14Intimacy!
48:15I know I'm not good at intimacy, but this is inspiring.
48:21So, and thank you all for making this. Thank you, guys.
48:34Thank you to everyone here at Imaginacion.
48:38Thank you to Emily for coming in and doing this and being amazing at it.
48:46And thank you to everyone that's here at Crave, Mexin, and this whole team.
48:50We really appreciate everything from Crave Quebec.
48:53Thank you so much.
48:54And thank you, you guys, for coming tonight.
48:56We appreciate you.
48:57Ha! Have a good day.
48:58The music show of course again.
48:58They thank you for coming.
48:59Thank you, Katya Motoplasty.
49:01But I love to't be here.
49:01But it's just fine.
49:02And I've got all the answers were for you.
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