Lionsgate Play has confirmed that the series More Than Rivals (Heated Rivalry) will have a second season in 2027, in parallel with a significant restructuring of its content strategy in India, where the platform will promote a model of theatrical releases before their arrival on streaming.
The sports-romantic fiction will take a notable turn in its new installment, moving away from the more impulsive elements of its first season to delve into a more complex and emotional stage. Its showrunner has advanced that the protagonists will experience an evolution focused on the real difficulties of a consolidated relationship, with more adult conflicts and a more introspective narrative.
This new approach coincides with the expansion of the series' universe, which will incorporate plots inspired by other works from the same literary environment, which will allow introducing new characters and expanding the narrative context beyond the main couple.
In parallel, Lionsgate Play has announced an ambitious roadmap for 2026 in India, with more than 100 planned releases and a commitment to the “theatrical first” model, which will bring between 10 and 12 big-budget films to cinemas before their platform premiere. Among the titles stand out productions with Russell Crowe, Gerard Butler, Robert Pattinson, Mark Wahlberg or Angelina Jolie, in addition to new installments of already known franchises.
With this dual strategy, the company seeks to reinforce its positioning as a premium content platform, combining major cinematic premieres with long-running international series such as Heated Rivalry, which consolidates itself as one of its key bets for the future.
What is known about the second season?
The showrunner of the series, Jacob Tierney, is currently writing the second season of the series, which will place Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams) and Ilya Rozanov (Connor Storrie) in a much more mature and complex context than in the first installment.
During his intervention on Saturday at BookCon, held at the Javits Center in New York, in a panel alongside author Rachel Reid, Variety magazine was able to gather Tierney's words, who stated that “it's different, it really is different”, since the main challenge of the adaptation is that now the characters enter a much more serious territory. Tierney detailed that “there is still flirting and sex, but that more youthful type of story of encounters in hotel rooms has largely disappeared”, which opens the door to new narrative difficulties.
The creator also underlined that the story is based on the book The Long Game, which gives continuity to the evolution of the couple. “The reason you start with ‘Heated Rivalry’ is because you want to get to The Long Game”, he explained, highlighting that this second stage explores a more realistic and emotionally sophisticated relationship.
Additionally, he confirmed that elements of the novel Role Model will also be integrated into season 2, although he insisted that the core will remain the protagonist couple. “Ilya and Shane are the heart of this series”, he stated, remarking that their evolution will continue to be the central axis as the universe of the fiction expands.