‘Five Brothers’ has been optioned by Canada’s Crave streaming service which also adapted ‘Heated Rivalry’ (pictured.) Sabrina Lantos/HBO Penelope Douglas’ adult romance novel has been optioned by Canada’s Crave streaming service for a TV series after the breakout success of its Heated Rivalry gay romancer adaptation.
Released in 2024, Five Brothers follows one woman who learns the secrets of the five Jaeger brothers: Macon, Army, Iron, Dallas, and Trace. “Five Brothers was such an immersive writing experience for me with a cast of characters I connected to immediately. I can’t wait to see these men brought to life,” Douglas said in a statement.
Crave parent Bell Media plans to develop the book as a multi-season TV series after successfully adapting Rachel Reid’s Heated Rivalry book into a gay hockey TV drama that was also sold to HBO Max in the U.S. market.
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“Heated Rivalry proved there is global appetite for sexy, sophisticated, and mainstream romance stories. With complex lead characters, a boundary-pushing story, and a built-in audience, we’re excited to develop Crave’s next big swing in the romance genre,” Carlyn Klebuc, general manager, original programming at Bell Media, said in a statement.
Heated Rivalry is set to return to television screens for a second season in 2027, with series creator Jacob Tierney and executive producer Brendan Brady on board to produce. The show focuses on two rival professional players — Canada-born Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams) of the fictitious Montreal Metros and Russia-born Ilya Rozanov (Connor Storrie) of the fictitious Boston Raiders — as they navigate a near-decade-long situantionship-turned-relationship.
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