The romantic depiction of same-sex relationships in the hit HBO show has been welcomed by the Chinese LGBTQI community
Pirated episodes of Heated Rivalry have spread widely among the LGBTQI community in China, bringing a sense of belonging and comfort to this group.
The hit Canadian show follows the steamy sex life and slow-building romance between Shane, a Canadian star hockey player, and Ilya, his Russian counterpart.
Under China's censorship system, LGBTQI films and tv series like Heated Rivalry are prohibited in mainland China. Viewers can only watch these by finding pirated copies online.
Yet despite the ban, Heated Rivalry is popular throughout China and has a rating of 8.8 on Douban (China's IMDB).
While Heated Rivalry is banned in China, the pirated versions of the show are very popular. HBO/Warner Bros
It’s not the only LGBTQI drama to go viral in China. The show Revenged Love, released in 2025 with an all-Chinese cast and crew, was also popular, and it has an IMDB rating of 8.4.
The series was also never officially approved for release in mainland China, but it's available on overseas platforms including YouTube, Netflix (Asia) and Viki. Like Heated Rivalry, it presents an uplifting depiction of same-sex romance.
These shows comfort many LGBTQ people who need to hide their identities in public life.
In China, while homosexuality is not illegal, widespread social prejudice and persistent discrimination force most LGBTQI individuals to hide their identities in daily life. Many feel unable to come out to their parents and friends.
Oscar Wu, a gay man living in China, saw many clips of Heated Rivalry on the social media platform Douyin as the show aired, as clips without kissing and sex scenes are allowed to be shown on social media.
Drawn to the characters, he decided to watch the show.
"There are very few TV series about [gay people] in this community because the LGBTQ community needs to hide themselves from the public, but they also want to see what real life should be like," Wu said.
His favourite scene is in the final episode when Shane, one of the male protagonists, comes out to his mother, and his mother says, "I'm sorry I made you feel like you couldn’t tell me."
"I think it's really touching because I think this situation is very rare in China," Wu said.
He added, "The older generation of parents in China hasn't reached that level of understanding yet.
"If I were in that situation, I wouldn't be honest with my parents because they might not be able to accept my sexual orientation," he said.
The coming out scene in Heated Rivalry is moving for many young gay people. HBO/Warner Bros
"This is a common phenomenon in China because homosexuality was considered a mental illness in China more than ten years ago, and it was only removed in recent years, so many people are very conservative in their thinking," he said.
According to the Human Rights Research Center (HRRC), the China Internet Broadcasting Association exacerbated this situation in 2017 by formally banning homosexual content from appearing in online broadcasts.
"The show always romanticizes life," Wu said, "but I think that for the LGBTQ community, who are in a difficult situation, they need such shows.
"Life is already full of difficulties, and they can’t watch more miserable shows. Watching some beautiful shows can give them some motivation and psychological comfort."
Dr. Sam Chan, a researcher in digital culture, gender and sexual orientation at the University of Sydney, told the BBC that what truly resonates with queer audiences is not fantasy or aspiration, but the subtle overlap between male-male love stories and their real lives.
He explained that when people cannot find real life role models, they hope to see them in film and television. These narratives are a source of strength in their lives.
Oscar Wu would like to see changes in China regarding the LGBTQI community, but said there's a long way to go.
"This is a long and arduous task. In China, women are still ashamed to talk about menstruation. People's thinking is still very conservative. Women's issues have not been resolved yet, and I think LGBTQ issues will be even more difficult to resolve."
When asked about his feelings after watching the show, he said, "If you really love someone, you should say it out loud."
