Recognize Scott From Heated Rivalry? Here's Where You’ve Seen Him Before

If the captain in Heated Rivalry looks familiar, that is because he is. François Arnaud has quietly been everywhere for the past decade, and now he is skating right through another buzzy romance drama.

A quick primer on Heated Rivalry

Heated Rivalry adapts Rachel Reid's hockey romance novels and casts Arnaud as Scott Hunter, the New York Admirals captain and a central figure in this world of slapshots, secrets, and messy feelings. The series is created by Jacob Tierney, debuted November 28, 2025, and runs 6 episodes. It is produced by Accent Aigu Entertainment and Bell Media for Crave, and it is also streaming stateside on HBO Max. For the numbers people: it is currently sitting at 9.1/10 on IMDb and 96% on Rotten Tomatoes. The cast includes François Arnaud, Hudson Williams, Connor Storrie, and Christina Chang.

Where you have seen François Arnaud before

• The Borgias (Showtime): This was Arnaud's big breakout. From 2011 through its three-season run (29 episodes), he played Cesare Borgia opposite Jeremy Irons' Pope Alexander VI, delivering a ruthless-but-charismatic heir who was as lethal as he was magnetic. The show was created by Neil Jordan and is produced by Myriad Pictures, with an 85% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 7.9/10 on IMDb. You can stream it on Paramount+. If you are watching Heated Rivalry and noticing the same mix of intensity and vulnerability in Scott Hunter, that is not an accident.
• Blindspot (NBC): Remember the amnesiac with the full-body tattoo road map? That one. Arnaud pops up primarily in seasons 1 and 2 as Oscar, the mystery man from Jane Doe's past who claims to be her former fiancée and feeds her instructions through those tattoos. Not the lead, but absolutely central to the show's early mythology and some of its biggest twists. Created by Martin Gero and produced by Berlanti Productions, the series stars Sullivan Stapleton, Jaimie Alexander, Rob Brown, Audrey Esparza, and Ashley Johnson. It premiered September 21, 2015, ran 100 episodes, scores 7.3/10 on IMDb, and has a 73% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. It is streaming on Netflix.
• Midnight, Texas (NBC): Arnaud headlined this supernatural drama (2017–2018) as Manfred Bernardo, a psychic who can talk to the dead and becomes the emotional anchor of a small town loaded with vampires, witches, and even a fallen angel. It is based on Charlaine Harris' books, premiered July 24, 2017, ran 19 episodes over two seasons, and was canceled for low performance, but it remains one of his meatier TV leads. Cast includes Dylan Bruce, Parisa Fitz-Henley, Arielle Kebbel, and Jason Lewis. It is produced by Universal Television, sits at 7.3/10 on IMDb with a 61% on Rotten Tomatoes, and streams on Amazon.
• Schitt's Creek (CBC/Pop): A great one-episode cameo that fans remember: in season 3's 'Sebastian Raine,' Arnaud plays the titular world-famous, painfully pretentious photographer who also happens to be David Rose's ex. He breezes into town, tries to exploit the Roses for a photo series, and leaves chaos (and some great Dan Levy eye-rolls) in his wake. Created by Eugene Levy and Daniel Levy, the series stars Catherine O'Hara, Annie Murphy, Jennifer Robertson, Emily Hampshire, and Tim Rozon. It premiered January 13, 2015, ran 80 episodes, holds an 8.5/10 on IMDb and 93% on Rotten Tomatoes, and streams on Hulu.
• Yellowjackets (Showtime): In season 2, Arnaud plays Paul, the secret boyfriend of Coach Ben Scott in the 1996 timeline. His scenes give a sharp, tender look at Ben's life before the crash and the pressures of queer identity in the 90s — threads Arnaud also pulls on as Scott Hunter in Heated Rivalry.
• UnREAL (Hulu): He shows up in the final season as Tommy Castelli, a manipulative producer working the chessboard behind the scenes of the show-within-the-show.
• The Moodys (Fox): Arnaud plays Dan Moody, the family's artsy son, in the holiday-comedy-turned-family-sitcom.
• Surface (Apple TV+): He appears as Harrison, a colleague connected to the lead character's increasingly twisty life.
• X Company (CBC): In this WWII spy drama, he plays Rene Villiers, a resistance fighter operating under impossible pressure.

A couple quick extras

Arnaud picked up a Canadian Screen Award for his work on The Borgias episode 'The Prince'.

He is also an outspoken supporter of LGBTQ+ representation; he publicly came out as bisexual in 2020 (via Just Jared), which gives his turn as Scott Hunter an extra layer of resonance. On the page, Scott is one of modern romance's standout queer characters, and Arnaud leans into that with a lived-in confidence.

Heated Rivalry is available to stream on HBO Max in the USA. If you have a favorite François Arnaud role I missed, drop it in the comments — I will probably nod along and say 'oh right, that one' too.