Don’t expect ‘naked stuff’ from Crave’s new queer TV show ‘Slo Pitch,’ cast says

TORONTO – If “Heated Rivalry” is about two men learning to be tender with each other, Crave’s new Sapphic sitcom “Slo Pitch” is kind of the opposite.

So says star Jess Salgueiro, quoting one of the show’s creators, Karen Knox. The mockumentary is about a group of friends — mostly queer and mostly women — goofing off while playing beer league softball.

“You got to see men be very intimate in a beautiful, vulnerable way in ‘Heated Rivalry,'” Salgueiro said. “Now you get to see a bunch of mostly women be silly and kind of stupid.” 

Salgueiro plays Joanne, who coaches the Brovaries: “the only mostly queer team in the Mississauga Slo-Pitch League,” her character says in the pilot.

Early comparisons between the two shows abounded. When “Heated Rivalry” premiered late last year and took the culture by storm, Crave had already announced it was making “Slo Pitch” and fans were quick to draw parallels.

Emily Hampshire, who plays Joanne’s egomaniacal ex Leanne (and who has since been cast in Season 2 of “Heated Rivalry”), said she texted one of the producers when she saw people making that comparison.

“I’m like, I feel like this is a bad pitch for this show,” she recalled.

“Just because it’s from Crave, it’s queer, and it’s sports. But like, they’re good at hockey; we’re bad at slo-pitch. They have naked stuff; we have not naked stuff, but funny, sloppy stuff.”

But Hampshire said that contrast — softness and vulnerability from men, crass levity from women — feels special. 

“It’s what you think would be the reverse,” she said.

Together, she said, Crave’s offerings broaden the landscape for queer representation on TV. 

For producer Elliot Page, the appeal was instant.

“The moment I heard the log line I was very excited and I was leaning in,” he said on a video call from New York.

Crave approached his company Pageboy Productions about the project fairly late in the game, Page said. It’s part of a development partnership his company inked with Crave parent company Bell in early 2025. The show is also produced by Shaftesbury and Boss & Co.

Page said he appreciated the clear, distinct characters — Hampshire describes Leanne as “a charming narcissist, a sparkly vampire,” while Knox’s character Boris is a boastful beer-obsessed German transplant — and that the show is “queer AF.”

Telling stories that centre LGBTQ+ experiences is key to Page’s mission. And, he said, it’s easier to do in Canada than in the United States, where the Halifax-born actor has now lived for many years.

The film and TV industry sees queer stories as a “risk,” he said, putting air quotes around the word.

“I see that playing out by the projects that get made and where they sell to, quite frankly, and what people are willing even to take meetings about,” he said.

In Canada, he said, LGBTQ+ stories are more likely to get made. 

“I hope it stays that way,” he said. “Because I think what can happen sometimes is you see these successes, but we don’t, like, learn from them or something, you know? So yeah, I hope that momentum continues.”

As for Page’s own career, he said he’s cautiously optimistic.

Earlier this month he told the “On Film… with Kevin McCarthy” podcast that he hadn’t received any new film offers since the premiere of the mega-blockbuster “The Odyssey,” in which he was praised for his portrayal of Sinon.

Now, he said, things seem to be moving in the right direction.

“I’m maybe, finally, maybe acting in a movie in the new year, but even that’s not technically a go yet,” he said.

“But yeah, just working on developing projects, pushing them along and trying to make things happen.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 25, 2026.