Heated Rivalry | TV, eh?

From a media release:

The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television (the Canadian Academy) announced today the nominees for the 2026 Canadian Screen Awards, recognizing excellence across 146 categories in film, television, and digital media. The 14th annual awards will be presented over four days in Toronto during Canadian Screen Week 2026. The celebrations will culminate in The 2026 Canadian Screen Awards, hosted by Andrew Phung, broadcasting and streaming on Sunday, May 31 at 8:00 PM (9:00 AT, 9:30 NT) on CBC, CBC Gem, Crave, CTV, Global, and STACKTV.

Television series North of North tops both television and overall nominations with 20, including Best Comedy Series, presented by Lionsgate Canada; Best Ensemble Performance, Comedy; and Anna Lambe for Best Lead Performer, Comedy. Heated Rivalry scores 18 nominations, including Best Drama Series, presented by Blink49 Studios, followed by Small Achievable Goals with 12.

In film, 40 Acres leads nominations with 10, including Best Motion Picture; and nods for R.T. Thorne for both Achievement in Direction and the John Dunning Best First Feature Film Award. Following with eight nominations are Follies | Folichonneries, Honey Bunch, and Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie, while Blue Heron and Mile End Kicks both receive seven.

Settle Down earns the most digital media nominations with nine, including Alexander Nunez for Best Lead Performance, Web Program or Series; followed by 18 to 35 with five; and Coming Home, Cows Come Home, and Dying Seconds with four each.

“Canada’s creative community has experienced an extraordinary year, with bold storytelling and world-class talent capturing attention at home and around the globe,” said Tammy Frick, CEO of the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television. “The momentum we’re seeing across film, television, and digital media speaks to the power of our industry, and we’re proud to celebrate the innovation and diverse voices that carry Canada’s screen sector to new heights.”

The 2026 Canadian Screen Awards also features the debut of the Spotlight Award categories, which are presented to eligible Canadians working on non-Canadian certified television series. Wayward leads the inaugural Spotlight Award nominations with seven, including the Spotlight Award for Best Series. The Way Home received four nominations, followed by Jane with three.

For a complete list of 2026 Canadian Screen Award nominees, please visit academy.ca/nominees.

Winners will be unveiled during Canadian Screen Week 2026, taking place from Wednesday, May 27 to Sunday, May 31 at the CBC Broadcast Centre in Toronto. Over the course of six award presentations, nominees and winners will be recognized alongside this year’s Special Award recipients, leading up to the finale: The 2026 Canadian Screen Awards. Hosted by Andrew Phung, the ceremony will be broadcast and streamed on Sunday, May 31 at 8:00 PM ET on CBC, CBC Gem, Crave, CTV, Global, and STACKTV. For a full listing of 2026 Canadian Screen Awards and programming, visit CanadianScreenWeek.ca.

Nominees for the Canadian Screen Awards are chosen by voting members of the Canadian Academy and by nominating juries, conducted virtually with representatives from the film, television, and digital media industries. The membership will now cast their votes between Thursday, March 26, 2026 and Monday, April 13, 2026 to determine the winners.

From a media release:

With production now underway, Crave today announced the principal cast for its first, half-hour, original drama series, YAGA, led by Carrie-Anne Moss (THE MATRIX), Noah Reid (SCHITT’S CREEK), Clark Backo (LETTERKENNY), and Hudson Williams (HEATED RIVALRY).

Based on the hit play by Kat Sandler, who also serves as writer and showrunner, the Crave Original series reimagines the myth of Baba Yaga, as a contemporary mystery thriller set in a small coastal town. Produced by Front Street Pictures and Blink49 Studios in partnership with Crave, YAGA is co-directed by David Frazee and Rachel Talalay, with principal photography currently underway.

YAGA follows Rapp (Noah Reid), a private investigator who arrives in a small coastal town to investigate the disappearance of a young heir to a powerful fishery, Henry Park (Hudson Williams). He finds himself at odds with an apprehensive local detective, Carson (Clark Backo), a charismatic university professor with a taste for younger men, Katherine (Carrie-Anne Moss), and a labyrinth of enigmatic suspects, secret lives, and ancient magic.

“Featuring a truly exceptional cast, this series marks another exciting collaboration with Blink49 Studios,” said Justin Stockman, Vice President, Content Development & Programming, Bell Media. “We’re thrilled to bring Kat Sandler’s bold vision to Crave with this first-ever half-hour drama, and to continue setting the bar for genre-bending, unexpected storytelling.”

“YAGA has evolved from myth to stage to my first greenlit series, reclaiming the wicked witch and reshaping her as an incendiary feminist antihero for our time,” said Kat Sandler. “It reflects the kind of storytelling I love: propulsive, accessible, dark, funny, and unapologetically bold. I’m incredibly excited to bring Crave’s first-ever half-hour drama to life alongside longtime collaborator Mackenzie Donaldson, Front Street Pictures, Blink49, and Bell Media.”

“YAGA is the kind of ambitious, genre-smashing storytelling we’re proud to support,” said Mackenzie Donaldson, Vice President, Scripted Television, Blink49 Studios. “Bringing Kat Sandler’s singular and fearless voice to the screen for the first time is a thrill. This is a story that is truly unique and unmistakably hers – fresh, contemporary reimagining of a classic myth brought to life by an exceptional cast and creative collaborators.”

The series marks a significant collaboration between Bell Media and Blink49 Studios, following Bell Media’s strategic investment in the Toronto-based production studio announced in June 2025. Bell Media and Blink49 Studios previously partnered on docuseries QUEEN OF THE CASTLE, and scripted series including DON’T EVEN, LATE BLOOMER, SIGHT UNSEEN, and THE TRADES.

Produced by Front Street Pictures and Blink49 Studios, showrunner is Kat Sandler; co-directors are David Frazee and Rachel Talalay. The series is executive produced by Mackenzie Donaldson, Andrew Miller and Carrie-Anne Moss and produced by Charles Cooper.

The series is distributed internationally by Sphere Abacus and will also be available as four, one-hour episodes for international sales.

Tag Archives: Heated Rivalry

North of North and Heated Rivalry topline Canadian Screen Award nominations

Carrie-Anne Moss leads an all-star cast for the Crave original series Yaga, including Noah Reid, Clark Backo and Hudson Williams