Connor Storrie is officially in his leading man era! The breakout star of Heated Rivalry has been unveiled as the first cover star for VMAN 56 Spring/Summer 2026, shot by fashion power duo Luigi & Iango, cementing his status as one of Hollywood’s next big obsessions.
The timing couldn’t be better: he’s also set to host Saturday Night Live for the first time this weekend, marking a huge one-two punch for a rising actor who only recently found himself at the center of the cultural conversation.
In his VMAN interview, Connor admits he’s still processing just how massive this moment is. “It’s really difficult to fully comprehend the level at which this is being seen,” he says of his sudden fame.
Heated Rivalry turned him into a social-media staple practically overnight, but behind the scenes, he’s just trying to keep up, stay grounded, and figure out what this new level of visibility actually means for the rest of his career.
Connor also uses the profile to talk about the kind of impact he hopes Heated Rivalry can have on Hollywood. “Well, because I write and direct as well — and I’m in the middle of finishing production on my iPhone feature — the press of this really kind of took over,” he explains. He’s been trying to find those little cracks in the chaos where he can connect what he’s learned personally with what the project represents more broadly.
He points out that while Heated Rivalry is considered “small” by studio standards, it still had real money and resources behind it, and yet it proved you don’t need a nine-figure budget to make something that lands. “It’s been really inspiring to me to show that something doesn’t necessarily have to be hundreds of millions of dollars in order to be cool and watchable,” he says.
For Connor, that’s the real takeaway: that this kind of success can be fuel for more independent-style film and TV makers, proof that audiences care far more about feeling something than about a price tag.
“Is it nice to have $100 million to make something? One hundred percent,” he admits. “But I think it shows that bigger isn’t always better. And people really do just love connection, you know? And that’s what this is, and that’s what people care about. That’s why the net of people who flock to this is so wide and diverse. People just love to connect.”
As for what comes next, Connor says his biggest “problem” is that he loves too many different things. “As an actor, I have a pretty broad range of what I appreciate, which kind of makes option paralysis more feasible,” he shares.
Ultimately, it all comes down to whether he can see the character clearly the moment he reads a script. “I’m a very visual person, so if I read something and I can see it plainly, I feel excited and comfortable right away. With Ilya, for example, the moment I read it, I could fully see that person and embody him.”
Looking ahead, he’s not interested in boxing himself into one lane. “Going forward, I just want to be in more things,” he says. “I’ve never really done a comedy, I’ve never really done a horror — I’m still very new to working. I want to stretch out, be bold, and see what sticks.”
Between a high-fashion VMAN cover, a buzzy SNL hosting debut, and an iPhone feature film quietly in the works, Connor Storrie is clearly just getting started. If Heated Rivalry was the ignition, VMAN 56 feels like the first real snapshot of a career that’s about to go wide-screen.
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