Rachel Sennott enters the digital interview and immediately launches into an explanation. “I can’t believe I’m late!” she exclaims, appearing truly remorseful. Despite being only a bit delayed, she wants to explain. “I tend to talk too much during calls. “Earlier calls made me late—I just can’t stop chatting!” Luckily, in this context, this is exactly what one hopes to experience. Additionally, it’s fairly expected. Anyone familiar with the boldly LGBTQ+ and outspoken film Bottoms—which Sennott co-wrote with her creative partner and starred in with collaborator Ayo Edebiri—would understand that she holds much to share, ranging from about gender, sex, or the appeal of creating a teen brawl society. Furthermore, after watching the latest seasonal show I Love LA, it becomes obvious that she carries further thoughts on the challenges of modern youth (Now in her thirties, Sennott is a relatable figure for this generation, on the cusp adept for connecting different age groups).
Guiding Lights and Creative Vision
The comparisons to the iconic series Girls naturally arise and the actress readily acknowledges enthusiastic, referencing it in addition to the HBO hit, the acclaimed comedy and Donald Glover’s series as guides for I Love LA, which tracks the travails of a social media star played by Odessa A’Zion and her friend and aspiring representative Maia. Perhaps, the largest spot on the moodboard went to the popular sitcom, the show depicting an emerging celebrity succeeding in a gritty LA scene (notable statement: “happiness eludes everyone but failures in this city”). Sennott discovered it during COVID-19, became “captivated”, and chose to add a fresh perspective on it “for the girls and the gays”.
“I wanted to make a show where the internet, not Hollywood, was the industry, because my career started online,” she says. The idea for I Love LA emerged—partly—from her own, at first rocky, transition to LA and from the saturn return, a much-talked-about event for enthusiasts. It was an era that included her understand major insights, in her career and in private life. “My twenties began with constant public emotional outbursts and disorganization,” she says. “Settling in LA during my mid-twenties brought calm, but soon everything unraveled.” “The struggles felt almost mythic in scale…”
Humble Origins
Growing up in the East Coast, Sennott commenced writing and performing comedy while enrolled in performance at New York University (NYU) Tisch School of the Arts. “I followed traditional paths to get on stage, but nothing clicked,” she states. “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.”
She decided to act independently, taking the stage at amateur nights with her friend and posting hilarious (and distinctly) bizarre online content digitally. One, titled Baby Cult, centered on characters intensely obsessed with pregnancy; a different one portrayed working at the preppy clothing store Hollister as similar to being caught in a scary movie. In a neat twist of fate, she met Emma through NYU’s movie community and ended up featuring in her first film, titled Shiva Baby, a tense dramedy set at a funeral gathering with shades of the Safdie brothers’ movie. The big theme of her career, she says, has been peers offering opportunities, instead of the industry at large. So the old guard wasn’t helpful? “Definitely not them”, she confirms, stating humorously: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”
Manifesting Dreams
Anyone who had doubts regarding Sennott earlier will surely be kicking themselves now. In what she describes as a “wild, full-circle” turn of events, she seems to have achieved the perfect project. A few years back she posted a clip named “it’s LA” on the internet, in which she mocked film promos (“Substance abuse is rampant here”). Now, she’s executive producer (with her partner) of a show about Angelenos juggling benefits of online celebrity (such as partying at Elijah Wood’s house) with drawbacks (your associate being accused of being a drug-addled criminal, and potentially becoming a risky pariah). One might easy to create a series about internet celebrity that was overly aspirational—or, more problematic, one that belittled at those depicted. This show does neither, creating a depiction of affluent young adult living that’s frank about the grot and the glamour.
Balanced Perspective
“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
