Rachel Sennott appears on the digital interview and at once launches into an explanation. “I can’t believe I’m late!” she exclaims, sounding genuinely apologetic. Despite being only slightly late, she wants to justify. “My phone conversations always run long.” “Previous discussions went over, and I realized I talk too much!” Thankfully, in this context, that’s just what you want to encounter. Additionally, it’s quite unsurprising. Those familiar with her boldly queer and outspoken movie titled Bottoms—which Sennott collaborated on with the director and appeared in together with close companion The Bear’s standout—would already know that she has a lot to discuss, be it about roles, relationships, or the pros of starting a youth fight club. Furthermore, once you finish her recent eight-part show I Love LA, it is clear that the star has even more perspectives on the challenges of young adulthood (At 30, she represents a relatable figure for this generation, a tale-end millennial adept for bridging different age groups).
Inspirations and Creative Vision
The comparisons to Lena Dunham’s Girls can’t be avoided and the actress readily acknowledges a fan, referencing the show in addition to the HBO hit, Issa Rae’s show and Atlanta as guides for I Love LA, which follows the travails of online personality played by Odessa A’Zion and close companion and fledgling representative Sennott’s character. However, the most significant influence on the moodboard went to Entourage, that show depicting an emerging Hollywood star succeeding in a gritty entertainment industry (notable statement: “nobody’s happy in this town except for the losers”). Sennott discovered it throughout COVID-19, became “hooked”, and chose to add a fresh perspective on it “targeting women and LGBTQ+ viewers”.
“I wanted to make a show where the internet, not Hollywood, was the industry, because my career started online,” she says. The idea for the series originated—to some extent—from her own, originally fractious, move to LA and from the saturn return, a popular event for astrology heads. That period marked a time that included her grasp significant life lessons, professionally and personally. “In my early 20s I was so messy, crying in public everywhere, all the time,” she recalls. “Settling in LA during my mid-twenties brought calm, but soon everything unraveled.” It was almost like these biblical tests …”
Starting Out
Growing up in the East Coast, Sennott started developing and showcasing stand-up while studying acting at NYU’s Tisch. “I followed traditional paths to get on stage, but nothing clicked,” she states. “Auditions for university comedy troupes led to universal rejection. 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 took matters into her own hands, taking the stage at amateur nights with Ayo and posting hilarious (and distinctly) weird comedy videos online. One, Baby Cult, depicted several females intensely obsessed with having babies; another imagined being employed at a trendy retail outlet as similar to being caught in a scary movie. In a neat twist of fate, she connected with Seligman through campus film circles and ended up featuring in her initial project, titled Shiva Baby, an anxious dramedy set at a Jewish wake with shades of the intense thriller. The big theme of her career, she says, has been peers supporting her, rather than established gatekeepers. So the old guard wasn’t helpful? “They were not involved”, she confirms, stating amusedly: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”
Manifesting Dreams
Those who had doubts regarding her earlier will certainly be kicking themselves currently. In what she calls a “astonishingly complete” story, she appears to manifested an ideal role. A few years back she posted a video named on LA life on the internet, in which she mocked Hollywood trailers (“Everyone’s hooked on something”). Years later, she’s the co-showrunner (with Emma Barrie) of a comedy about Angelenos juggling advantages of digital stardom (such as celebrating at a celebrity’s house) with drawbacks (your associate being accused of being a drug-addled criminal, and potentially becoming a “brand unsafe” persona non grata). One might easy to make a show about digital influence that was horribly glamorous—or, even less favorable, one that belittled at its subjects. The series avoids both, creating a portrait of advantaged millennial existence that’s honest about the mess 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 says. “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
