Rachel Sennott enters the online meeting and right away begins an explanation. “Oh my God – I’m sorry!” she states, sounding really regretful. Despite being only slightly behind, she feels compelled to explain. “I tend to talk too much during calls. I had two calls before this, and I’m like, I’ve gotta stop talking!” Luckily, for a writer, that’s just what one hopes to experience. Additionally, it’s pretty unsurprising. Anyone who have seen her unapologetically queer and outspoken film Bottoms—which Sennott penned with her creative partner and appeared in with her friend The Bear’s standout—will be aware that she has plenty to share, ranging from on identity, relationships, or the pros of starting a high-school fight club. Plus, once you finish the new eight-part HBO series titled I Love LA, viewers realize that she has even more thoughts about the darker side of Gen Z life (At 30, she represents a relatable figure for this generation, straddling eras adept for bridging both generations).
Influences and Storytelling Approach
Likenesses to the iconic series Girls can’t be avoided and the actress readily acknowledges a fan, naming it in addition to the HBO hit, Issa Rae’s show and the innovative program as guides for her series, which follows the struggles of online personality Tallulah and her friend and aspiring talent manager Sennott’s character. Perhaps, the largest spot on the moodboard was reserved for the popular sitcom, the HBO sitcom about an emerging A-list actor making his way in a corrupt Hollywood (choice quote: “happiness eludes everyone but failures in this city”). Sennott discovered it during COVID-19, became “obsessed”, and resolved to create a new version on it “with female and queer audiences in mind”.
“My aim was to focus on digital fame over traditional entertainment, as my own beginnings were on the web,” she says. The inspiration for the series originated—to some extent—from firsthand, initially rocky, relocation to Los Angeles and from the cosmic event, a frequently discussed event for astrology heads. That period marked a time that saw her understand some big truths, professionally and individually. “My twenties began with constant public emotional outbursts and disorganization,” she says. “After relocating to Los Angeles in my mid-twenties, I found stability, only for things to crumble. “The struggles felt almost mythic in scale…”
Starting Out
Raised in New England, Sennott began creating and acting comedy while enrolled in performance at NYU’s Tisch. “Despite trying every conventional route, I couldn’t find my footing,” she explains. “I tried out for all the NYU comedy groups, and got rejected from all of them. “None of the university plays cast me either.” And I just felt like, what am I doing here?”
She decided to act independently, appearing at open mics with her friend and sharing hilarious (and decidedly) weird skits digitally. One, Baby Cult, depicted several females obsessively drawn to pregnancy; another portrayed working at the brand Hollister as like being stuck in a thriller. By chance, she connected with Seligman through NYU’s movie community and ended up appearing in her directorial debut, Shiva Baby, a stressful dramedy set at a religious event with echoes of the Safdie brothers’ movie. The big theme of her path, she says, has been people her own age offering opportunities, instead of established gatekeepers. So the old guard wasn’t helpful? “Definitely not them”, she repeats, stating amusedly: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”
Rising Success
Those who were skeptical about her earlier will likely be feeling foolish now. As part of she calls a “incredibly circular” story, she appears to achieved the perfect project. A few years back she shared a video called about Los Angeles on the internet, in which she parodied Hollywood trailers (“Everyone’s hooked on something”). Years later, she’s executive producer (with the co-writer) of a comedy about LA residents managing advantages of internet fame (such as socializing at a celebrity’s house) with its pitfalls (your client being accused of being a drug-addled thief, and possibly becoming a risky persona non grata). Some could simple to create a show about internet celebrity that was extremely glamorous—or, even less favorable, one that belittled at those depicted. The series does neither, resulting in a portrait of affluent twentysomething living that’s frank about the grot and the appeal.
Empathetic Approach
“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
