🔗 Share this article

Rachel Sennott joins the digital interview and right away launches into an apology. “I can’t believe I’m late!” she states, sounding really apologetic. Despite being only slightly behind, she wants to justify. “My phone conversations always run long.” I had two calls before this, and I’m like, I’ve gotta stop talking!” Luckily, for a writer, that’s precisely what one hopes to hear. Moreover, it’s fairly expected. Those who know her unapologetically openly gay and outspoken movie titled Bottoms—that she co-wrote with Emma Seligman and appeared in alongside collaborator Ayo Edebiri—will understand that she possesses much to say, be it about identity, intimacy, or the pros of forming a teen brawl society. Plus, by the end her new seasonal show I Love LA, it becomes obvious that the star carries even more thoughts on the struggles of Gen Z life (As a millennial, Sennott serves as an honorary member of the gang, on the cusp skilled for bridging both generations).

Influences and Creative Vision

The comparisons to the iconic series Girls can’t be avoided and Sennott readily acknowledges a fan, referencing the show in addition to the classic series, Issa Rae’s show and Donald Glover’s series as inspirations for the project, which follows the travails of online personality played by Odessa A’Zion and close companion and aspiring representative Maia. Notably, the most significant spot on creative vision went to the popular sitcom, that HBO sitcom depicting a rising A-list actor making his way in a corrupt entertainment industry (memorable line: “nobody’s happy in this town except for the losers”). Sennott discovered it throughout the pandemic, became “obsessed”, and decided to put her own twist 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 emerged—to some extent—from personal, initially rocky, transition to LA and from the cosmic event, a much-talked-about occurrence for followers. That period marked a time that included her grasp significant truths, professionally and in private life. “During my younger years, I was chaotic, often breaking down in public,” she recalls. “Settling in LA during my mid-twenties brought calm, but soon everything unraveled.” “It resembled a series of extreme challenges…”

Early Beginnings

Growing up in New England, Sennott started developing and showcasing comedy while pursuing theatre 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. “It left me questioning my purpose and place.”

Sennott seized control, taking the stage at amateur nights with her friend and uploading hilarious (and very) bizarre skits online. One, titled Baby Cult, followed a group of women obsessively fixated on motherhood; a different one portrayed being employed at a trendy retail outlet as similar to being stuck in a scary movie. By chance, she connected with Seligman through the university’s film scene and eventually appearing in her directorial debut, titled Shiva Baby, a tense film set at a Jewish wake with shades of Uncut Gems. The big theme of her career, she explains, has been people her own age offering opportunities, instead of the industry at large. So the old guard wasn’t helpful? “Not the gatekeepers”, she confirms, adding amusedly: “They prefer we don’t succeed.”

Manifesting Dreams

Individuals who had doubts regarding her earlier will surely be kicking themselves today. As part of she calls a “wild, full-circle” development, she appears to achieved the perfect project. A few years back she posted content named “it’s LA” on the internet, in which she lampooned movie previews (“Everyone’s hooked on something”). Six years on, she’s executive producer (with her partner) of a series about Angelenos managing advantages of online celebrity (such as socializing at a celebrity’s house) with its pitfalls (your friend being suspected of being a drug-addled thief, and potentially becoming a risky pariah). It would be easy to produce a program about digital influence that was overly aspirational—or, worse, one that punched down at its subjects. The series avoids both, resulting in a representation of affluent millennial life that’s frank about the chaos and the shine.

Nuanced Portrayal

“Many programs portray youth and online life with disdain and mockery,” 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