The Crave gay hockey romance series Heated Rivalry has set screens ablaze with its visceral and intimate sex scenes between the two leads, Hudson Williams (who plays Shane) and Connor Storrie (who plays Ilya).
The on-screen chemistry between the two actors is palpable, so much so that Williams recently told PRIDE, “I hope it can be this celebratory thing that can join people in their homes getting hot and heavy together hand-holding, leg grabbing, lip biting, sweat permeating, pants tightening, [and] spit swapping."
As a professional astrologer, I do a lot of relationship readings. I look at two people’s synastry (how two charts interact with one another), and their composite chart (a separate chart that treats the relationship itself as its own “entity”) to better understand their dynamic: What comes easily, what feels tense, and what they bring out in one another.
Relationship astrology isn’t only for couples. You can read these charts for friendships, family dynamics, co-workers, and, yes, scene partners.
I was very curious to see why these two actors’ chemistry feels so believable and powerful. And when I tell you the gasp I gasped when I
saw the following:
1. Connor’s Mars sits right on top of Hudson’s Venus
Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie in 'Heated Rivalry'
Crave
When I studied their charts, my eyes went straight here.
In astrology, the more exact something is, the louder it's felt. Connor’s Mars isn’t “pretty close” to Hudson’s Venus. It isn’t “almost right on top,” either. It is literally at the exact same degree (8° of Aries) as Hudson’s Venus.
In synastry, exact interactions between one person’s Mars and another person’s Venus send pheromones into overdrive.
Mars is lust and how we go after what (and who) we want. Venus is charm and what we find attractive. One person’s Mars on another person’s Venus is like lighting very dry firewood: it catches fast and gets hot quickly.
This doesn’t mean Connor and Hudson are secretly dating. It means that when they’re in a room together, Connor’s “I want” energy (Mars) aligns perfectly with Hudson’s “oh, I like that!” (Venus) energy. It’s the kind of charge you want between two actors starring in a queer sports romance series.
2. Their Venuses are extremely compatible
Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie in 'Heated Rivalry'
Crave
Connor’s Venus in Aquarius and Hudson’s Venus in Aries are approximately 60 degrees apart (in astrology, that’s a very harmonious connection called a sextile).
Venus relates to aesthetics, beauty, style, and what we enjoy. When two people’s Venuses are compatible, their taste levels vibe and they “get” each other’s way of flirting. This is very helpful for co-creating a believable romantic dynamic that doesn’t feel forced.
3. The asteroid of desire is majorly activated in both charts
Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie in 'Heated Rivalry'
CraveIn astrology, the asteroid Eros is all about passionate connections and carnal desire. Connor’s Eros sits at 1° Capricorn; Hudson’s Eros is at 0° Aries. That means their Eros placements are square one another (90º apart).
Squares create friction, and friction creates heat. The means one person’s Eros squaring someone else’s Eros is all about intense magnetism. You notice the other person in the room, whether you want to or not.
This is exactly what was triggered when they read for their respective parts. In a recent interview with Out, Hudson recalled that day and described Connor as having an “X-factor that just felt realer than what I thought it could possibly be.”
That visceral appeal is quintessential Eros activation. It doesn’t necessarily mean they want to act on it in real life, but it means this primal energy is there to be channeled into their work.
4. Their steamy Mars–Neptune connection
Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie in 'Heated Rivalry'
Crave
In their composite chart (the chart that speaks to the energies and themes of their connection), Mars and Neptune sit right next to one another.
Put Mars (sexuality, passion, physical drive) and Neptune (fantasy, projection, and, fittingly, television and film) together and you get an intoxicating blend of erotic fantasy and idealized desire.
In a romantic relationship, Mars–Neptune can easily get nebulous and messy if people aren’t grounded. But in a fictional partnership, it speaks to two people who can sell a sexual fantasy so convincingly that audiences forget where the acting ends and reality begins.
That doesn’t mean they’re secretly living out their characters’ storyline off-screen, but rather that we’re watching two actors whose combined energy is tailor-made for a sexually-charged made-for-TV fantasy.
Is their chemistry “real”?
Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie in 'Heated Rivalry'
Crave
Astrologically speaking? One hundred percent. I don’t mean “real” in an “off-camera affair” sense. Rather, that Hudson’s and Connor’s birth charts are perfectly wired to effortlessly bring out erotic tension and heightened fantasy when they interact.
If you’ve found yourself rewatching their scenes jaw-droppingly in awe of how intensely their sexual chemistry hits through the screen, that certainly speaks to the caliber of the show’s writing, directing, and casting. And, in my professional opinion, also to astrology in action.
