‘Heated Rivalry’ Star Connor Storrie Shows Off Russian Accent in SNL Promo
The Saturday Night Live hosting debut for Connor Storrie isn’t until Saturday, Feb. 28, but the show already gave fans a reason to lose their minds. SNL posted a promo clip on Instagram on Wednesday, Feb. 25, featuring Storrie in a rapid-fire accent duel with castmember James Austin Johnson — one that ends with Storrie pulling out his Ilya Rozanov Russian accent like a loaded weapon.
How the Accent Duel Played Out
The clip opens with SNL castmembers Marcello Hernandez and Ashley Padilla complimenting Storrie on Heated Rivalry, the series that has broken through from fan-favorite to mainstream phenomenon. They praise his Russian accent — the one he uses to portray Ilya Rozanov, the Russian hockey player at the center of the show — and Storrie casually responds that he does all kinds of accents.
That’s when James Austin Johnson enters in full cowboy mode.
“Did someone say all kinds of accents?” Johnson can be heard saying, as he makes his way in in a cowboy accent. “Well I reckon this here show ain’t big enough for the both of us.”
Storrie stands up, puts on his own cowboy hat, and fires back: “I reckon it ain’t, partner.”
Padilla and Hernandez then start shouting out accents for the two to perform on the spot. The list includes “German,” “Cajun,” “French,” “Shakespeare,” “Shrek,” and “Jamaican” — the last of which both partners wisely agree that “guys like us” probably shouldn’t be doing.
Then comes the final call: Russian.
Storrie delivers a flawless Russian accent, drops the Rozanov line, and shoots Johnson down. The duel is over.
What makes Storrie’s command of the Russian accent striking is that the Heated Rivalry actor and Texas native did not know the Russian language before booking the show. He learned it for the role, and the result has shocked fans who have watched him embody Ilya Rozanov across the series.
The Work Behind the Accent
In an interview with Behind the Blinds released Jan. 5, Storrie explained how he developed his approach.
“It was about time and consistency,” Connor told the outlet. “The moment I got out of the car on set, I started speaking with the accent to all the PAs, all the ADs, hair, makeup, and wardrobe people. I stayed in it until the last cut of the day. Not because I was ‘in character,’ but because it gave me an hour and a half to warm up.”
The 25-year-old admitted the accent felt “ridiculous at first.”
“You think, ‘I don’t sound like that,’” he continued. “Of course you don’t. But if you normalize it—both for yourself and for the people around you—it starts to feel real. I think that’s why people convince themselves they’re bad at accents. They don’t give themselves permission to sound wrong at first.”
That idea — sounding “wrong” as the first step to sounding real — has become part of the fandom conversation around why Storrie’s Rozanov feels so lived-in and authentic on screen.
The Streaming Numbers Behind the Phenomenon
The series, a Crave Canadian show that also aired on HBO Max and is a Rachel Reid adaptation, has become one of their most streamed acquired shows ever. Storrie stars alongside Hudson Williams, and together they’ve driven viewership to record-breaking levels on both sides of the border.
In Canada, Heated Rivalry is now the most-watched original series ever on Bell Media’s Crave streamer.
The U.S. numbers match that momentum. Heated Rivalry is now the top-rated non-animated acquired series on HBO Max since it launched in 2020, and is in the top five among all scripted debuts on HBO Max this year, per Variety.
Production of this article included the use of AI. It was reviewed and edited by a team of content specialists.
