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Manila Bulletin devider Entertainment devider Movies and TV devider 'Heated Rivalry' star Hudson Williams reveals closeted queer professional athletes sent him direct messages

'Heated Rivalry' star Hudson Williams reveals closeted queer professional athletes sent him direct messages

Published Jan 11, 2026 10:01 am
"Heated Rivalry" star Hudson Williams shared that he has received multiple messages from queer professional athletes who have not yet come out.
Hudson Williams (Facebook)
Hudson Williams (Facebook)
During a recent appearance on Andy Cohen Live, Williams said that since the show’s premiere, athletes in professional sports ranging from hockey to baseball and football “reach out somewhat anonymously, who are like, ‘I’m a professional player, still, and I’m still in the closet, according to a report by them.us.
“They’re reaching out to Rachel [Reid], our author, who will then kind of relay these lovely emails,” he continued. “Sometimes they’re just reaching out privately through Instagram, and those are the ones that really just kind of hit you and go, ‘Oh, so this is a fun show, and it’s celebratory, but also, sometimes it’s just hitting people right in the nerves.”
Based on Rachel Reid’s book of the same name, the Crave series stars Williams and Connor Storrie as Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov, two hockey rivals who embark on a secret, years-long sexual (and eventually romantic) relationship.
Them.us reported that In September 2024, Out Sports reported that none of 4,592 rostered players in “Big Five” U.S. pro men’s sports — the National Football League (NFL), National Hockey League (NHL), National Basketball Association (NBA), Major League Soccer (MLS), and Major League Baseball (MLB) — are publicly out as queer.
Of those leagues, the NHL is the only men’s pro league to never have a current or former player publicly come out as gay, the same report added.
The closest the NHL has come to having an out gay player is Luke Prokop, who was drafted by the Nashville Predators in 2020 while still competing in the team’s minor league.
Although Prokop is currently the only publicly out gay athlete signed to a U.S. men’s pro sports team, he’s never been moved up from the minor leagues to the NHL.
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