‘Big daddy’ Mark Carney has gone viral worldwide after doing the Heated Rivalry ‘leg thing’

We’re not even a full month into 2026, and Canada has already produced a brand-new heritage moment — one that was almost certainly not on anyone’s New Year’s bingo card.

In a rare moment for recent North American politics, a world leader is going viral for all the right reasons, after Prime Minister Mark Carney — newly nicknamed “Big daddy” — was photographed striking a pose inspired by Heated Rivalry, the Canadian hockey drama that became a breakout hit for its mix of on-ice competition and off-ice tension.

On Thursday, January 29, Carney attended an Ottawa gala celebrating the Canadian film and television industry, including the hit series that premiered last year and immediately embedded itself in the national consciousness.

And it didn’t take long for the prime minister to let his inner fanboy slip.

While working the red carpet, Carney met Hudson Williams, who plays one half of the show’s closeted professional hockey rivalry-turned-romance.

Williams presented Carney with the now-iconic Team Canada fleece his character wears — a garment that carries an unreasonable amount of narrative tension for something with a zipper.

Carney accepted it with a huge smile and immediately pulled it on over his black suit, repeating “Oh baby!” and “I’ve made it!” like a man experiencing a very specific cultural moment, and proving that when faced with a choice between decorum and fandom, he knows the drill.

Things escalated quickly from there.

As the two posed for photos, Carney joked that he and Williams were “basically the same” and called him his “best friend,” a sentiment that feels like a very Heated Rivalry way to describe someone you’ve known for approximately 45 seconds.

When photographers asked them to switch poses, the prime minister playfully told Williams to “do the leg thing,” a reference to the series that immediately sent fans — and, it seems, the world — into a spiral.

Later that evening, speaking to a sold-out ballroom at the Prime Time conference, Carney continued leaning into the bit.

“Congratulations on creating a story that has struck a chord with so many across this country and around the world,” he said, before adding, “Because of you, cottage season will have a whole new meaning this summer.” IYKYK.

The interaction quickly went viral, with photos and clips spreading beyond Canada and into timelines across the United States, the U.K., Australia, and elsewhere.

In a post that racked up nearly 300,000 likes, The GIST summed up the general global reaction: “May Canada never be media trained LOL.”

Award-winning beauty brand Elate Cosmetics chimed in with, “Yeah! Big Daddy Mark FTW,” officially cementing the prime minister’s newest nickname — one which has since taken on a life of its own and will almost certainly haunt him at future G7 meetings.

Heated Rivalry follows two professional hockey players whose on-ice rivalry turns into a secret relationship, highlighting the pressures of elite sports and the lack of visibility for queer athletes.

During his speech on Thursday, Carney praised the show for its storytelling, strong sense of Canadian identity, and 2SLGBTQI+ representation.

He singled out director Jacob Tierney and author Rachel Reid — whose Game Changers novels inspired the series — for choosing to keep the production in Canada after American studios had reportedly asked the creators to “tone down” the show.

“What’s the point in that?” he said. “Jacob did the right thing. He did the smart thing. He came home to Canada. He came home to a nation that celebrates what makes us different.”

So true, Big Daddy. So true.

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