Margaret Cho blames Trump and ICE for missing out on major Heated Rivalry role

Comedian Margaret Cho has blamed the President of the United States for losing a huge opportunity to feature in the wildly popular saucy hockey show, Heated Rivalry.

The popular sports drama racked up a flawless 100 per cent score on Rotten Tomatoes after making its debut in 2025, but Cho wasn't part of the mega cast that have now wince enjoyed significant praise for their portrayal of the characters.

Sport romance dramas are not all that common, so when HBO's Heated Rivalry came out, it was an opportunity like no other.

So when actress and comedian Cho was given the golden ticket to be part of the show's pilot, you'd think it would be an obvious choice to say yes.

However, she has since blamed Trump and US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for missing out on the chance to be part of the series, because of one major fear.

Margaret Cho revealed all to the I Never Liked You podcast (Instagram/nicksmith09)

Speaking on the I Never Liked You podcast, she explained how she lost out on being part of the cast: “Last year, I got a pilot script for a show that I really loved, but it shot in Canada."

While you might not think this is a bad thing, considering it's only North of the States, Cho said the current political climate played a theme in why she couldn't travel there to shoot the episode.

She explained that her politics could have made her a target for ICE agents, suggesting: “And I was so scared because I’m so vocal about hating ICE and hating this administration. I was like, I will get detained at the border and I will be put in ICE detention if I go.”

While she didn't say which role she was up for, she did confirm that it was the series that depicts two professional hockey players [Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams] who go on to engage in a romantic relationship, despite being 'rivals'.

She said of the turmoil: “I was struggling over it. I had to talk to all of these people about it. And I was super upset about it, and I said no. And it was Heated Rivalry."

But even though she didn't make the cut, Cho said she's now a fan of the show, and could even appear in season two.

She said she could have been in Heated Rivalry (HBO)

“I’ve watched it. I’ve hosted some rewatch parties, and I’m like it kills me, like it kills me because of Trump,” Cho said of her chance to act in the pilot.

Her previous comments on Trump's immigration policies include a 2015 interview with The Daily Beast, per The Independent, where she said: “I really do believe that it’s something to distract us from the real problem, which is that we’re going to lose a huge part of women’s health care that is vital to the survival of women, the health of women, and the sanity of women. So I think it’s a red herring. I think Donald Trump is not really there for any purpose other than to distract.”

Cho later revealed in 2021 to The Guardian that she loves 'to Donald Trump-bash and blame him for any reason I can', adding: “But the fact is that his casual racism is more a symptom of the greater problem than the cause of this. It’s about the repetitive nature of hate crimes and how they’re not new, even if they seem new, because they’re presented as shocking and new by the news.

She also talked about her safety as a Korean-American, saying: “I’m really scared. It’s kind of like: how do you escape your skin? I limit my time out and I think it’s awful to acknowledge that.”

UNILAD reached out to the White House for comment.