Who Is Shane Hollander’s Stylist?

Shane Hollander, the softer-spoken protagonist played by Hudson Williams in the Canadian “gay hockey show” phenom Heated Rivalry , has something to confess to his rival-turned-lover, Ilya Rozanov (Connor Storrie), in episode five of the show’s surprise-smash first season. “If I tell you something, will you promise not to tell anyone or make fun of me?” Shane asks, before confiding, “I hired a stylist.” Ilya, a brooding Russian hockey star who is confident and Slavic enough to wear things like a vintage 1998 Jean Paul Gaultier leopard-print silk shirt , laughs in Shane’s face. The scene takes place in 2017; the characters have found themselves in Tampa Bay, Florida for an All-Star game, and have reunited at a corporate outdoor bar. Ilya donned a red Hawaiian shirt for the occasion; Shane, Canada’s pro-hockey golden boy, whose wardrobe heretofore contained only nondescript athletic wear, has just arrived in a tailored (albeit still nondescript) cream-toned suit over a black tee. It is one of a handful of times on the show when both characters are clothed. In the moment, Ilya ribs Shane for his new look (“You got what, tired of looking like shit?”) but Shane’s defense hits the nail on the head for where menswear was headed by the late 2010s: “Some of the guys in the league are so fashionable,” he admits. “I just want to stop looking like I was always going to the gym.” Indeed, by 2017 standards, the fictional Shane Hollander would have actually been pretty ahead of the curve, as far as rich and famous guys realizing that dressing for attention might actually be good for their careers. While professional athletes, particularly NBA players , have been influential dressers for decades, there was a systemic shift around the late 2010s. High-profile athletes finally started clocking that they could be standing on business, securing lucrative luxury ambassadorships and garnering (usually) favorable press in publications such as this one-a model their women counterparts had already mastered for a century. (Alas, it wouldn’t be until after the pandemic that Hollywood actors caught up .) And in the show, the well-mannered, closeted Shane is what they call “brand safe” in the biz; he’s already racked up deals with Reebok and Rolex. For Hanna Pulley, Heated Rivalry ’s costume designer, Shane’s styled debut is meant to look like he’s “still very contained in this heteronormative mask.” Despite the inadvertently Miami Vice -esque suit, “he’s just doing the easiest thing to not draw attention.” For Pulley-who also costumed the first season of Benito Skinner’s coming-out college comedy, Overcompensating -dressing Shane was about highlighting his insecurity. “There’s just so much discomfort in the character himself, in the world outside of being an athlete. Like, Hudson is doing that great,” she added with a laugh, alluding to the actor’s outgoing personality IRL. “Hudson and Shane are very different people.” Because the thing is, in this scene, Shane Hollander also looks pretty terrible. His beige suit is stiff and boring, the thick fabric isn’t right...

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