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Rachel Sennott enters the online meeting and at once starts an explanation. “I can’t believe I’m late!” she states, sounding really remorseful. Despite being only a couple of minutes delayed, she feels compelled to justify. “My phone conversations always run long.” I had two calls before this, and I’m like, I’ve gotta stop talking!” Thankfully, during an interview, that’s precisely what is ideal to hear. Moreover, it’s fairly unsurprising. Anyone who have seen her unapologetically queer and unapologetically crass project titled Bottoms—that Sennott co-wrote with her creative partner and appeared in with collaborator Ayo Edebiri—can already know that she possesses a lot to discuss, whether on gender, sex, or the appeal of forming a teen brawl society. Plus, by the end the latest multi-episode HBO series I Love LA, it becomes obvious that the star has additional thoughts regarding the challenges of modern youth (As a millennial, Sennott serves as an honorary member for this generation, on the cusp adept for straddling different age groups).

Inspirations and Storytelling Approach

Parallels to the iconic series Girls naturally arise and Sennott is an admirer, citing it alongside the HBO hit, the acclaimed comedy and the innovative program as inspirations for I Love LA, which details the journey of online personality played by Odessa A’Zion and close companion who is also fledgling agent portrayed by Sennott. However, the biggest spot on the moodboard was reserved for the popular sitcom, the show focusing on a rising Hollywood star navigating in a corrupt LA scene (notable statement: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). Sennott started watching it amid COVID-19, became “hooked”, and chose to add a fresh perspective on it “with female and queer audiences in mind”.

“I wanted to make a show where the internet, not Hollywood, was the industry, because my career started online,” she explains. The inspiration for I Love LA emerged—to some extent—from her own, at first fractious, relocation to LA and from her cosmic event, a popular occurrence for astrology heads. It was a phase that involved her learn major life lessons, in her career and personally. “In my early 20s I was so messy, crying in public everywhere, all the time,” she says. “Settling in LA during my mid-twenties brought calm, but soon everything unraveled.” It was almost like these biblical tests …”

Starting Out

Raised in the East Coast, Sennott commenced developing and showcasing stand-up while studying theatre at a prestigious arts school. “I followed traditional paths to get on stage, but nothing clicked,” she says. “I tried out for all the NYU comedy groups, and got rejected from all of them. I tried out for all the NYU plays and didn’t make it into any of them. “It left me questioning my purpose and place.”

She decided to act independently, taking the stage at live shows with her friend and uploading hysterical (and decidedly) bizarre comedy videos online. A particular video, Baby Cult, centered on characters fetishistically obsessed with pregnancy; a different one portrayed working at the brand Hollister as akin to being caught in a horror film. By chance, she met Seligman through NYU’s movie community and ended up appearing in her first film, Shiva Baby, a stressful film set at a funeral gathering with echoes of the intense thriller. A recurring idea of her career, she says, has been people her own age supporting her, instead of traditional networks. Does that mean bypassing the usual powers? “Not the gatekeepers”, she confirms, continuing amusedly: “They prefer we don’t succeed.”

Rising Success

Those who had doubts about Sennott earlier will certainly be regretting it currently. As part of she describes as a “incredibly circular” turn of events, she has created the perfect project. In 2019 she shared a clip named about Los Angeles online, in which she parodied movie previews (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Six years on, she’s executive producer (with the co-writer) of a show about city dwellers juggling the perks of digital stardom (such as partying at a celebrity’s house) with downsides (your associate being suspected of being a intoxicated stealer, and perhaps becoming a “brand unsafe” persona non grata). Some could tempting to make a program about internet celebrity that was extremely idealized—or, more problematic, one that mocked at those depicted. The series steers clear of each, creating a depiction of advantaged twentysomething life that’s frank about the chaos and the shine.

Balanced Perspective

“There have been a lot of shows that depict young people and their relationship to the internet in this very condescending, hateful way,” 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