Rachel Sennott joins the digital interview and immediately begins an explanation. “Apologies for the delay!” she says, appearing genuinely apologetic. Although she's only slightly late, she wants to justify. “I have such a problem, because I’m a yapper on the phone. “Earlier calls made me late—I just can’t stop chatting!” Thankfully, during an interview, this is just what is ideal to experience. Additionally, it’s quite predictable. Anyone who have seen the fearlessly LGBTQ+ and unapologetically crass movie Bottoms—that she penned with the director and appeared in alongside her friend The Bear’s standout—would already know that Sennott possesses much to discuss, be it about roles, sex, or the appeal of forming a youth brawl society. Furthermore, after watching her latest multi-episode program I Love LA, it becomes obvious that the star has additional thoughts about the challenges of Gen Z life (Now in her thirties, Sennott serves as a bridge for this generation, straddling eras skilled for bridging both generations).
Influences and Storytelling Approach
Parallels to Lena Dunham’s Girls naturally arise and Sennott readily acknowledges enthusiastic, naming the show alongside Sex and the City, the acclaimed comedy and Donald Glover’s series as inspirations for her series, which tracks the travails of an influencer played by Odessa A’Zion and her friend and new talent manager Maia. Perhaps, the biggest spot on the moodboard belonged to the HBO series, that show focusing on an emerging Hollywood star navigating in an often-seedy entertainment industry (choice quote: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). Sennott discovered it during lockdown, became “hooked”, and decided to put her own twist on it “targeting women and LGBTQ+ viewers”.
“My aim was to focus on digital fame over traditional entertainment, as my own beginnings were on the web,” she says. The inspiration for this project originated—in part—from her own, originally fractious, relocation to Los Angeles and from the astrological phase, a popular phenomenon for astrology heads. It was an era that saw her grasp some big truths, work-wise and in private life. “In my early 20s I was so messy, crying in public everywhere, all the time,” she says. “In my mid-20s, I moved to LA and got settled. And then I felt like everything started to just fall apart. It was almost like these biblical tests …”
Humble Origins
Raised in the East Coast, Sennott began developing and showcasing comedy while enrolled in acting at NYU’s Tisch. “Despite trying every conventional route, I couldn’t find my footing,” she explains. “Every campus humor group turned me down after tryouts.” I tried out for all the NYU plays and didn’t make it into any of them. “I wondered why I was even there at all.”
Sennott decided to act independently, appearing at amateur nights with Edebiri and sharing uproarious (and decidedly) weird comedy videos on the internet. A particular video, titled Baby Cult, centered on several females intensely obsessed with pregnancy; a different one envisioned being employed at a trendy retail outlet as like being stuck in a horror film. In a neat twist of fate, she connected with Emma through campus film circles and ended up appearing in her directorial debut, titled Shiva Baby, a tense dramedy set at a Jewish wake with echoes of Uncut Gems. The central motif of her path, she notes, has been peers offering opportunities, as opposed to established gatekeepers. Does that mean bypassing the usual powers? “They were not involved”, she emphasizes, continuing amusedly: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”
Career Breakthrough
Those who had doubts regarding Sennott then will certainly be feeling foolish now. As part of she describes as a “incredibly circular” turn of events, she seems to have created her dream vehicle. In 2019 she posted a video called on LA life on social media, in which she mocked Hollywood trailers (“Substance abuse is rampant here”). Six years on, she’s the co-showrunner (with the co-writer) of a comedy about Angelenos balancing benefits of online celebrity (such as socializing at a celebrity’s house) with its pitfalls (your associate being labeled as being a intoxicated thief, and potentially becoming a “brand unsafe” pariah). It would be easy to create a program about digital influence that was overly glamorous—or, worse, one that mocked at the characters. The series avoids both, making for a representation of affluent millennial existence that’s honest about the chaos and the shine.
Nuanced Portrayal
“Many programs portray youth and online life with disdain and mockery,” she observes. “I think that young people have been through a lot – I’m mostly thinking of people younger than me, like my little sister, who went to college during Covid, so she had to come home, or my other sister who was doing school online.”|“The younger generation has faced significant
