Hudson Williams is a Canadian actor best known for playing Shane Hollander in the hit Crave and HBO Max series Heated Rivalry, which premiered in November 2025.
He rose from short films and small TV roles to become one of Canada’s fastest-rising stars, earning a Best Lead Performer win at the 2026 Canadian Screen Awards at just 25 years old.
Who is Hudson Williams?
Hudson Williams is a Canadian actor, filmmaker, and writer based in British Columbia.
He grew up in Kamloops, trained at Langara College in Vancouver, and spent years building his craft through short films and minor TV roles before landing his breakout part.
His career changed overnight when Heated Rivalry premiered on Crave and HBO Max in late 2025.
The show became a global phenomenon almost immediately, turning Williams into a household name far beyond Canada.
Few Canadian actors have broken out on such a dramatic scale in such a short period of time.
Williams plays Shane Hollander, a closeted professional hockey player who falls in love with his rival Ilya Rozanov over nearly a decade of competition.
The role required emotional range, physical commitment, and the ability to carry a story built entirely on longing and restraint.
He is also a filmmaker. Williams writes and directs his own short film projects alongside his acting career, and his ambitions extend well beyond the roles he is cast in.
Early Life of Hudson Williams
Hudson Williams was born in Kelowna, British Columbia, and grew up in Kamloops, British Columbia, a mid-sized city in the interior of the province.
His upbringing was shaped by two parents who came from very different backgrounds and built a creative, disciplined household.
His mother is Korean and worked as an interior designer. She later coordinated transportation on film sets, including the FX series Shogun.
His father is of British and Dutch descent and is a mechanical engineer who, as Williams told The Hollywood Reporter, graduated at the top of his class.
That mix of artistic creativity and technical discipline is something Williams credits for shaping how he approaches his work.
Williams has spoken openly about his Korean heritage and what it means to him. He told GQ that he hopes young Asian kids see him on screen and think about becoming actors.
His mother initially had concerns about the limited roles available to Asian actors, but that concern shifted when Williams booked Heated Rivalry, a role that specifically called for an actor who is half Asian.
Hudson Williams Age / Birthday
Hudson Williams is 25 years old as of 2026, born on February 13, 2001. His zodiac sign is Aquarius, a sign often linked with independence and originality.
He continues to build his career while still in his mid-twenties, with several major projects already confirmed for 2027.
Hudson Williams Ethnicity and Nationality
Hudson Williams is Canadian. He is of mixed Korean and British-Dutch heritage, with a Korean mother and a father of British and Dutch descent.
Williams identifies as half-Korean and has spoken about Asian representation in media in interviews with GQ and other outlets.
Hudson Williams Height
Hudson Williams stands at approximately 5 feet 11 inches (180 cm) tall.
His lean, athletic build suited the role of a professional hockey player in Heated Rivalry, and he trained physically to bring credibility to the part.
His height is frequently discussed by fans who compare him to co-star Connor Storrie on screen.
That on-screen physical pairing became one of the most talked-about elements of the show.
Hudson Williams Education
Hudson Williams attended Beattie School of the Arts as a child in Kamloops, where he studied dance, music, and theatre.
He began in a French immersion kindergarten before his mother enrolled him at Beattie, a decision that put him on the path to performing arts.
He later attended Sa-Hali Secondary School in Kamloops, where he played on the basketball team and also trained in mixed martial arts alongside his academic work.
Those early years of physical and artistic training gave him a well-rounded foundation before he ever stepped on a professional set.
In 2020, Williams moved to Vancouver to attend Langara College, where he completed a Certificate in Film Arts (Acting) in the college’s acting stream.
His program coordinator, Jonas Quastel, later told the media he always expected Williams to succeed.
Langara’s film arts program saw a surge in applications after Williams became famous, with the acting stream receiving triple the usual interest.
Hudson Williams Career
Early Work and Short Films (2020–2024)
After graduating from Langara College in 2020, Williams did what most early-career actors do.
He juggled auditions with service jobs, including work at a spaghetti restaurant, while steadily building his portfolio through short films.
He appeared in a series of short projects including Over the Edge (2020), Off Objective (2021), and Devil Makes Three (2023).
These productions gave him on-camera experience and helped him develop the technical discipline that his Langara training had introduced.
That grind before fame is something Williams has talked about with genuine warmth in interviews.
He transitioned to slightly larger television roles in 2024, appearing in Allegiance as Junior and Tracker as Brandon Stokes.
He also appeared in the Christmas film All I Need for Christmas that same year.
These parts were small, but they placed him in front of casting directors and helped expand his professional network.
Heated Rivalry Breakthrough (2025–Present)
Williams was cast as Shane Hollander in Heated Rivalry, the Crave and HBO Max adaptation of Rachel Reid’s Game Changers novel series.
The show was created and directed by Jacob Tierney, and Williams starred alongside Connor Storrie, who plays Ilya Rozanov.
The series premiered on Crave on November 28, 2025, and was almost immediately picked up by HBO Max for American audiences.
What began as a modestly budgeted Canadian hockey drama quickly became one of the most talked-about shows in the world.
Nothing could have predicted the scale of the response.
Williams spent a month in a cottage with co-star Connor Storrie before filming began, at the request of showrunner Tierney, in order to build genuine chemistry.
That preparation showed on screen. The connection between the two actors became the emotional engine of the entire show.
Rachel Reid, the author whose books inspired the series, praised Williams publicly, saying he fully embodied Shane Hollander and highlighting the expressiveness of his face as a key part of what made the performance work.
Recent Projects
In February 2026, Williams was announced as Henry Park in the new Crave supernatural drama Yaga, starring alongside Carrie-Anne Moss and Noah Reid.
The series, based on playwright Kat Sandler’s 2019 stage production, reimagines the Baba Yaga myth as a small-town mystery thriller.
Yaga premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2026 and is set to debut on Crave and AMC+ in late 2026.
Williams was also cast in a Netflix limited series about the collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX, in which he plays a character named Duncan Rheingans-Yoo.
Additionally, he has two independent film projects in the pipeline: Encore and 8, directed by Canadian filmmaker Inderveer Sodhi.
Season 2 of Heated Rivalry began filming in Toronto in the summer of 2026, with a premiere expected in spring 2027.
Hudson Williams Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Network / Studio |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Over the Edge | Cory | Short Film |
| 2021 | Off Objective | The Agent | Short Film |
| 2023 | Devil Makes Three | Jason | Short Film |
| 2024 | Allegiance | Junior | TV Series |
| 2024 | All I Need for Christmas | TJ | Film |
| 2024 | Tracker | Brandon Stokes | TV Series |
| 2025 | Heated Rivalry | Shane Hollander | Crave / HBO Max |
| 2026 | Yaga | Henry Park | Crave / AMC+ |
Hudson Williams Awards and Recognition
Williams won Best Lead Performer in a Drama Series at the 2026 Canadian Screen Awards on May 31, 2026, becoming the youngest actor to win the award at age 25.
Heated Rivalry set a new record that night, taking home 16 awards and winning every category in which it was nominated, surpassing the previous record of 13 set by BlackBerry in 2024.
Williams and co-star Connor Storrie presented at the 83rd Golden Globe Awards in January 2026, a major milestone for two actors who had only just broken out onto the international stage.
That Golden Globes appearance announced to the world that these were names worth remembering.
Williams also made his late-night television debut with an interview on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon in January 2026.
Hudson Williams Girlfriend
Hudson Williams is in a relationship with Katelyn Rose Larson, a tattoo artist based in British Columbia.
He first publicly acknowledged the relationship on Valentine’s Day 2026, sharing a heartfelt tribute on Instagram that described how Larson had been with him since before his career took off, back when he drove a 2000 gold Mazda Protégé and had no job.
The two made their red carpet debut together at the 2026 Vanity Fair Oscar Party on March 15, 2026, at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.
Williams told Etalk Canada on the Oscars red carpet that fans had been lovely toward Larson since he went public.
Larson is also the artist behind matching tattoos that Williams and co-star Connor Storrie got together, reading “Sex sells.”
Hudson Williams Sexuality
Hudson Williams has not publicly disclosed his sexuality.
After Heated Rivalry premiered, many fans and some public figures speculated about his sexual orientation, given the intimate same-sex content of his role as Shane Hollander.
Williams addressed the speculation directly in a December 2025 interview with Deadline.
He said that having to manage assumptions about his private life was simply part of being a celebrity, and that he had to “let go” of people making assumptions about him.
That response defined his approach to the entire conversation.
Showrunner Jacob Tierney has stated publicly that he never asked any cast member about their sexual orientation during the casting process, and that he cast based on enthusiasm and willingness to do the work.
Williams echoed that framing, saying the bond he had built with co-star Connor Storrie mattered more than either of their personal identities.
In February 2026, Williams confirmed his relationship with Katelyn Rose Larson on Instagram.
Some fans reacted with accusations of queerbaiting, but many others defended him, pointing out that actors are not required to match the sexuality of the characters they play.
Hudson Williams Net Worth
Hudson Williams has an estimated net worth of around $500k as of 2026. His career is at an early stage, and credible estimates from established sources vary widely.
He only began landing significant roles in 2024, and Heated Rivalry premiered in late 2025, meaning most of his earning potential is still ahead of him.
His income currently comes from acting fees on Heated Rivalry and his other TV and film projects, including the upcoming Yaga and the Netflix FTX series.
As a lead on a Canadian streaming production that HBO Max acquired, his visibility for future roles and negotiating power has grown significantly since the start of 2026.
Williams also has income potential from short films he writes and directs himself.
Season 2 of Heated Rivalry and several other confirmed projects mean his earnings are expected to grow substantially through 2027.
Hudson Williams Social Media
Hudson Williams is active on Instagram under the handle @hudsonwilliamsofficial, where he shares career updates, personal posts, and occasional Korean-language content.
His follower count crossed two million within weeks of the Heated Rivalry premiere and has continued to grow.
He does not maintain a heavily active public presence across all platforms, preferring Instagram as his main way of communicating with fans.
That relatively grounded approach to social media has been noted by fans who appreciate that his online presence feels genuine rather than performative.
Conclusion
Hudson Williams built his career one small role at a time, and when his moment came with Heated Rivalry, he was fully ready for it.
His story is one of quiet preparation meeting explosive opportunity, and the best of his work is clearly still ahead.