Heated Rivalry Rumor Controversy! François Arnaud Claps Back At Online Harassment Over Talk He’s Dating Much Younger Co-Star Connor Storrie!

Heated Rivalry is all the rage — but for one star, the time under the spotlight has come with some major downsides!

François Arnaud, 40, who plays Scott Hunter on the hit HBO Max hockey series, clapped back at the online harassment he’s dealt with ever since rumors sparked that he’s dating his much younger co-star Connor Storrie! Connor, 25, of course, plays Ilya Rozanov, opposite his on-screen love interest Hudson Williams, AKA, Shane Hollander.

Related: Heated Rivalry Hunk Details EXACTLY How To Get His ‘Thick’ Butt!

Fans have been loving Connor and Hudson’s press tour interactions, but when Connor and François were spotted at JFK Airport together on Wednesday after press in NYC (see HERE), dating rumors went wild and fans lashed out!

Shortly after the airport sighting, François was hit with controversy after unfollowing his cast mates on Instagram! This included Connor, Hudson, his on-screen love interest Robbie G.K., and the series creator Jacob Tierney. What??

According to several outlets, he trimmed his social following by hundreds. That said, fans noticed, he quickly followed back his cast on Friday. So, what the f**k is happening?? Is there a heated rivalry within the cast?

Speaking to the Toronto Star on Saturday, the actor blasted the online harassment he’s endured. He started with the bright side:

“In general, fans have been incredibly positive and respectful.”

But that hasn’t been the case for all his interactions:

“For the ones that aren’t, I think it’s a lot of younger fans who don’t really understand the difference between reality and fiction.”

Alongside online harassment and bullying, he said he’s gotten death threats. JFC! His message to the haters? Rewatch the show! He explained:

“I honestly wish they would just rewatch the show, because it doesn’t seem like they got its message. Pay attention more closely. Did we watch the same show?”

As for his unfollow spree, he explained:

“What’s happening is that I’m unfollowing everyone, and Instagram won’t let me do that all at once. … You can only unfollow a certain amount of people over 24 hours, which I did not know at the time.”

At the time of this writing, he only follows one account, Amnesty International, a non-governmental human rights organization. He’s definitely sending a message!

But one more thing. After all these dating rumors and the unfollowing, the actor posted a photo of Hudson and himself flashing the middle finger to the camera. It seemed to be his subtle way to hit back at the drama, but he’s denying that now, saying:

“It’s completely unrelated to that. I mean, ‘completely’ maybe would be a lie, but mostly unrelated to that. I’ve done these ‘spot the differences’ posts for a long time, and I just thought it was nice to do something with Hudson, and that’s it.”

With his newfound fame, he’s clearly reevaluating his relationship to social media. But this unfortunate online hate also has him considering making a major life change:

“I’m like, ‘Oh, maybe a little bungalow with street access, not on a gated property, is not the best thing.’ So yeah, I’m moving into a building with a doorman.”

The Heated Rivalry stars are some of the MOST talked-about celebs on the planet right now. We totally understand wanting more privacy, especially if he’s getting death threats! Fans need to remember that these are just actors at the end of the day! There’s absolutely no justification for sending hate comments in this day and age.

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For more information on cyberbullying, go to https://www.stopbullying.gov/cyberbullying/what-is-it

[Image via YouTube/CBS Mornings/TODAY.]