Fans Are Just Now Realizing That ‘Heated Rivalry’s’ Connor Storrie Played the “Real Joker”

You know a TV show is good when fans start dissecting everything about it, including its actors. Since HBO Max’s steamy drama, Heated Rivalry, debuted in November 2025, the girls, gays, theys, and the like have been obsessed with anything the show offered, especially its main characters, Shane Hollander, played by Hudson Williams, and Ilya Rozanov, played by Connor Storrie.

Connor’s portrayal of Rachel Reid’s book character has turned many heads and resulted in fans being convinced he’s too talented for Heated Rivalry to be his first role. As it turns out, Heated Rivalry came after he played another iconic fictional character within the DC Universe: The Joker.

Let’s dive in.

Before his role on Heated Rivalry made him a household name, many of Connor’s new fans didn’t even recognize him in the 2024 horror movie-musical, Joker: Folie à Deux, which starred Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga. In the film, the Odessa, Texas, native played a young inmate (not joking, that’s literally the name of his character) at Arkham Asylum.

According to Entertainment Weekly, Connor’s most pivotal moment in the film came during its final scene when he was seen observing Arthur throughout several scenes that play across the film, culminating in a bloody stabbing that leads to Arthur's death.

The scene shows how the character then carves a bloody smile into his own face, signaling that, at least in the universe of Folie á Deux, he is the real Joker, and Joaquin’s character, Arthur, was merely the catalyst for the rise of the man who would go on to become the Gotham City menace.

Connor’s role may have been smaller than his starring role on Heated Rivalry, but the role was a monumental moment in the film, as it introduced a possible “new Joker.” The actor discussed the buzzed-about theories in a 2024 interview with TMZ (via ComicBook.com).

“It definitely wasn’t shut down, but it also wasn’t like, “Hey, look, this is your future or the future of this character,” Connor said about the possibility of ‘the new joker.’ “For me, it very clear that it was Joaquin’s movie – this is following Arthur – so I definitely saw my place in that. It’s not like ‘Hey look, this is where I’m going, this is who I am!"

"I saw it very much as a part of that story rather than it becoming anything else after that. Yeah that was very clear,'” he continued. “We do follow Arthur the entire time, so it really is his story, no matter how it ends. It is the story of Arthur Fleck from sort the beginning to end.”

The actor’s assessment of his Joker role seemed to be correct. After he wrapped Folie à Deux, he starred in the sci-fi thriller April X, followed by Heated Rivalry.