Jordan Firstman said the gay sex scenes in HBO Max's "Heated Rivalry" featuring Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie felt staged and not representative of how gay people actually have sex, sparking debate after an interview with Vulture.François Arnaud and Hudson Williams pushed back — Arnaud asked whether there is only one way to show "authentic" gay sex on TV while Williams took a lighter tone — and producers Tierney and Brendan Brady said the show's early success led HBO Max to order a second season.Firstman later used an
Instagram Story to acknowledge his bluntness and said he regretted the fallout as he endured mean-spirited trolling, while both his show "
I Love LA" and "
Heated Rivalry" remain available to stream on
HBO Max.