“Heated Rivals” isn’t up for an Emmy Award, but the Television Academy has still found a way to award the groundbreaking Crave series, which can be seen here in the U.S. on HBO Max. “Heated Rivals” has been selected as one of six television series to be recognized at the 19th Annual Television Academy Honor Awards. The award “recognizes outstanding television programs and their producers who harness the extraordinary power of television to drive social change.”
Other shows chosen this year include Netflix’s “Adolescence,” which won eight Emmys in 2025 (including Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series), Comedy Central’s “South Park” (which won five Emmys in its long run) and FX’s “Dying for Sex” (which earned nine Emmy nominations last year but was shut out of the win).
Also recognized are the two 2025 Emmy-nominated Apple TV documentaries “Deaf President Now!” (including Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Feature) and HBO Max’s “Seen & Heard: The History of Black Television.”
The Television Academy noted that this year’s winners tackled themes such as social media and online misogyny. The fight for disability rights and deaf representation. Bureaucracy in end-of-life care and cancer treatment. Past history, social justice, and racism. Political extremism, religious tribalism, and media hypocrisy. LGBTQ+ representation, inclusivity in sports, and toxic masculinity.
“Storytelling is an important source of information about social issues of local and global importance, and television is increasingly becoming a powerful platform for knowledge and discourse, and a catalyst for social change,” said Chris Abrego, president of the Television Academy, in a statement. “We selected this year’s Honors recipients to celebrate their commitment to educating and motivating television viewers around the world.”
The Television Academy Honors Selection Committee was chaired by Bobby Banks, Governor of the Sound Editors Peer Group, and Howard Meltzer, CSA, Governor of the Children’s Programming Peer Group.
The programs eligible for this year’s Television Academy Honors were broadcast from January 1 to December 31, 2025. The 19th Annual Television Academy Honors Awards Ceremony will be held on Wednesday, May 20, at the organization’s Saban Media Center in North Hollywood.
“Heated Rivals” is not eligible for Primetime Emmy Awards because it was produced only by Canadian producers and not on a U.S. network. However, this provision does not apply to TV Academy Honors.
Television Academy Honors explains how they selected this year’s winners:
‘Adolescence’ (produced by Netflix, Warp Films, Matriarch Productions and Plan B for Netflix): ‘The impact of this series has exceeded its industry reputation with storylines that tackle the dangers of social media and online misogyny. ‘Adolescence’ is now available for free as a teaching resource in all secondary schools across the UK and in schools in France, Belgium and the Netherlands. This sparked a debate in the House of Commons and led to a roundtable discussion with Congress. Creators, National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, Children’s Society, Prime Minister The debate around digital safety and consent in the digital age is rapidly increasing globally. ”
“Deaf President Now!” (Apple TV, produced by Concordia Studios): “Deaf President Now!” This program was born out of an urgency to fix a missing chapter in civil rights history. In 1988, deaf students at Gallaudet University led one of the most unified and successful student protests in American history. In just seven days, they secured the university’s first Deaf president and helped pave the way for the ADA, which now protects nearly 25 percent of Americans. Led by a deaf filmmaker and a production team that is over 40% deaf, the documentary aimed to disrupt how disability stories are told with a visual and aural storytelling approach that centers deaf perceptions, rather than translating for a hearing audience. By incorporating access, authorship, and representation into filmmaking, this project reflects the principles of self-determination and leadership demanded by the movement. ”
‘Dying for Sex’ (FX/Hulu, produced by 20th Television): ‘Death, sex and female friendship have been the subject of countless stories throughout human history, but ‘Dying for Sex’, the television adaptation of the hit podcast of the same name, ‘Wondery’, is an honest story in the spirit of the real Molly. After a lifetime of shame, she threw away the rules about what “normal” should be. The limited comedy series explores the intimate emotions and themes of end-of-life caregiving and cancer bureaucracy in a vivid account of a woman who simultaneously breaks down and heals without judgment. ”
“Heated Rivalry” (Crave/HBO Max, produced by Accent Aig Entertainment in association with Bell Media’s Crave): “Shane Hollander (Hudson Williams) and Ilya Rozanov (Conner Story) are two of Major League Hockey’s biggest stars, bound by ambition, rivalry, and a magnetic force neither of them fully understands. What begins as a secret love affair develops into a multi-year journey of love, denial, and love. Over the next eight years, the pair pursue glory on the ice, but are torn between the sport they live in and a love they can’t ignore, and must decide whether their competitive world has room for something as fragile and powerful as real love.
“Seen & Heard: The History of Black Television” (HBO Max, produced by HBO Documentary Films and presented by Arc Media Productions in association with Hoorae): “Seen & Heard: The History of Black Television” Heard is a living history of black television, told by the people who created it, lived it, and shared its impact with the world. At its core, it’s a story about authorship: how black creators have fought to define their stories in an industry that has too often been erased, and how their work has shaped the world. This documentary connects generations from Debbie Allen to Lena Waithe and Oprah Winfrey to Cord Jefferson and Issa Rae, and by preserving and amplifying these voices, this film provides both a testament to what has come before and a blueprint for what comes next.
“South Park” (Comedy Central, produced by Comedy Central): “For nearly 30 years, South Park has been one of America’s most fearless cultural critics, unafraid to satirize those in power, take aim at hypocrisy, and challenge audiences to reconsider the social norms we have come to passively accept. In an environment where public discourse has become increasingly siled and policed, South Park has been one of America’s most fearless cultural commentators, unafraid to satirize those in power, take aim at hypocrisy, and challenge audiences to reconsider the social norms we have come to passively accept. Its commentary on political extremism, religious tribalism, and an erosion of nuance have a unique meaning, and the episodes that spark conversations across ideological lines without resorting to provocation for the sake of provocation are a testament to the show’s enduring relevance and South Park’s willingness to continue to challenge both its viewers and itself, and how comedy can be an important conscience in America.
