One series changed everything. In a matter of months, Connor Storrie has gone from relative anonymity to millions of followers, major film roles and some of fashion’s most coveted campaigns.
Just over a year ago, Connor Storrie was one of countless actors trying to make it in Los Angeles while waiting for the opportunity that might finally change everything. He had spent years auditioning and working as a waiter to support himself as an acting career remained frustratingly slow to take off. Today, he has more than four million Instagram followers, has hosted ‘Saturday Night Live’, earned an Emmy nomination and become one of Saint Laurent’s newest faces. Somewhere in between, one series changed absolutely everything: ‘Heated Rivalry’.
His performance as Ilya Rozanov, opposite Hudson Williams, turned Rachel Reid’s adaptation into one of television’s breakout phenomena. Storrie went from being largely unknown to having millions of people following his every interview, appearance and social media post. The series itself has continued to grow too, recently being named Program of the Year at the 2026 TCA Awards.
The milestones of a career transformed in months
From that point onwards, almost every month seemed to bring another milestone. In January, Storrie signed with CAA, one of Hollywood’s most powerful agencies, before he and Williams took part in the Olympic torch relay ahead of the 2026 Winter Games in Italy. Then, on 28 February, came another moment that would have seemed almost unimaginable months earlier: Storrie hosted ‘Saturday Night Live’. The appearance subsequently earned him his first Emmy nomination, for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series.
Hollywood was quick to follow. In March, he joined ‘Peaked’, the new A24 comedy directed by Molly Gordon, and the following month he was announced for ‘Turpentine’, Craig Zobel’s thriller starring Melissa McCarthy.
Then there is ‘April X’, one of the most intriguing projects on his slate. Although filmed before Heated Rivalry sent his profile into overdrive, the sci-fi thriller will arrive in US cinemas on 18 September 2026, at precisely the moment Storrie is experiencing the greatest exposure of his career. He plays Bax, a young man searching for his twin sister April, played by Lilly Krug, after she disappears inside a sprawling futuristic city inspired by the post-Soviet landscape. What begins as a search gradually pulls him into an increasingly dark psychological spiral.
Fashion wants Connor Storrie too
His transformation cannot be explained through Hollywood alone. Saint Laurent quickly recognised Storrie’s potential, and his relationship with the house has become another marker of just how quickly his status has changed. In January, he was already sitting front row at the brand’s Autumn/Winter 2026/27 menswear show in Paris. Months later, he made his Met Gala debut in Saint Laurent, while his relationship with Tiffany & Co. was also beginning to take shape.
Now, that relationship has moved considerably further. Anthony Vaccarello has made Storrie one of the faces of Saint Laurent’s Autumn/Winter 2026 campaign, alongside BLACKPINK’s Rosé and Liu Wen. Photographed by Talia Chetrit, the campaign places him firmly inside the visual world of one of fashion’s most influential houses rather than simply dressing him for another red carpet.
Even his new haircut for the campaign has become a story of its own. GQ dedicated an entire piece to the so-called ‘Storrie Shag’, a late-1970s-inspired look with references to Robert Mapplethorpe. It may seem like a small detail, but it says plenty about where his celebrity currently stands: when an actor’s haircut starts generating headlines of its own, something has clearly shifted.
And then, of course, there is ‘Heated Rivalry’. The series that opened all these doors will return for a second season, with Storrie once again stepping into the role of Ilya as he attempts to prove that his career can extend far beyond the character that made him famous.
In less than a year, he has moved through ‘Heated Rivalry’, CAA, the Olympic torch relay, SNL, an Emmy nomination, A24, ‘Turpentine’, ‘April X’, the Met Gala, Tiffany & Co. and Saint Laurent. Not long ago, he was waiting tables while hoping someone in Hollywood would give him an opportunity. Now film, television and fashion all seem to want a piece of Connor Storrie.
‘Heated Rivalry’ created the phenomenon. Everything that has happened since suggests the real phenomenon might be Storrie himself.
