HEATED RIVALRY Star François Arnaud Covers ELLE Canada Magazine

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HEATED RIVALRY François Arnaud Covers ELLE Canada Magazine Photographed by Royal Gilbert and Styled by Amanda Lee Shirreffs.

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Just like the millions of us who have watched (and rewatched) HEATED RIVALRY, the incredibly popular Canadian queer hockey-romance series directed by Jacob Tierney and based on Rachel Reid’s book series, Game Changers, François Arnaud is still trying to wrap his head around the trajectory of this little Crave show that could. The 40-year-old Montreal-born talent, who has been working consistently since his 20s, is taking it all in stride. “You can’t buy into the hype so much yourself,” he says of the popularity of both the show and his character, Scott Hunter. “You have to see things for what they are. We made this really cool thing that we love, and it’s so amazing that other people love it too. And [now] we’re going to try to make more good things together—and apart.”

“I do feel like there’s something about seeing men be vulnerable and emotionally available— seeing men struggle with the pressures of masculinity and strength and then decide to soften and open up— that’s rewarding for people,” he says. “It’s rewarding for women who deal with men who are stuck emotionally so often in their lives, and it’s [rewarding for] queer people and straight men too.”

[Photo Credit: Royal Gilbert for ELLE Canada]

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