Rachel Sennott joins the digital interview and immediately starts an apology. “Apologies for the delay!” she says, appearing genuinely remorseful. Although she's only a couple of minutes delayed, she wants to explain. “I tend to talk too much during calls. “Previous discussions went over, and I realized I talk too much!” Luckily, in this context, that’s exactly what you want to experience. Besides, it’s pretty expected. Those who have seen the unapologetically queer and brash movie titled Bottoms—which Sennott co-wrote with her creative partner and appeared in together with close companion Ayo Edebiri—would be aware that Sennott possesses much to discuss, ranging from about identity, relationships, or the appeal of starting a high-school fight club. Plus, once you finish her new eight-part HBO series titled I Love LA, it is clear that the star carries further perspectives regarding the darker side of young adulthood (At 30, Sennott serves as an honorary member of the gang, straddling eras skilled for connecting both generations).
Likenesses to Lena Dunham’s Girls can’t be avoided and the actress is a fan, referencing it together with the classic series, Issa Rae’s show and Donald Glover’s series as guides for her series, which tracks the struggles of a social media star Tallulah and close companion who is also new agent Sennott’s character. Notably, the most significant presence on concept belonged to Entourage, the HBO sitcom about an emerging celebrity making his way in an often-seedy entertainment industry (notable statement: “happiness eludes everyone but failures in this city”). She started watching it amid lockdown, became “hooked”, and resolved to add a fresh perspective on it “targeting women and LGBTQ+ viewers”.
“My aim was to focus on digital fame over traditional entertainment, as my own beginnings were on the web,” she says. The inspiration for this project originated—to some extent—from personal, initially difficult, relocation to Tinseltown and from her saturn return, a much-talked-about occurrence for followers. That period marked a phase that saw her understand major truths, professionally and personally. “My twenties began with constant public emotional outbursts and disorganization,” she recalls. “Settling in LA during my mid-twenties brought calm, but soon everything unraveled.” “The struggles felt almost mythic in scale…”
Raised in Connecticut, the star began creating and acting humor while studying theatre at a prestigious arts school. “I followed traditional paths to get on stage, but nothing clicked,” she explains. “I tried out for all the NYU comedy groups, and got rejected from all of them. “Theatre productions at school also didn’t accept me. “It left me questioning my purpose and place.”
Sennott decided to act independently, appearing at open mics with Edebiri and uploading hilarious (and decidedly) unconventional online content on the internet. One, titled Baby Cult, followed a group of women intensely obsessed with motherhood; another portrayed working at a trendy retail outlet as similar to being caught in a scary movie. By chance, she met Seligman through campus film circles and eventually starring in her first film, titled Shiva Baby, a stressful dramedy set at a funeral gathering with shades of the intense thriller. A recurring idea of her path, she says, has been peers giving her a shot, as opposed to the industry at large. Does that mean bypassing the usual powers? “Not the gatekeepers”, she emphasizes, continuing humorously: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”
Those who had doubts regarding Sennott earlier will surely be regretting it currently. As part of she describes as a “wild, full-circle” story, she appears to achieved an ideal role. Previously she uploaded a video titled on LA life on social media, in which she parodied movie previews (“Everyone’s hooked on something”). Now, she’s the co-showrunner (with the co-writer) of a show about Angelenos balancing the perks of online celebrity (such as partying at a famous actor’s house) with drawbacks (your client being accused of being a intoxicated criminal, and possibly becoming a risky outcast). It would be tempting to make a show about internet celebrity that was extremely idealized—or, more problematic, one that mocked at the characters. I Love LA avoids both, making for a portrait of affluent twentysomething living that’s honest about the grot and the appeal.
“There have been a lot of shows that depict young people and their relationship to the internet in this very condescending, hateful way,” she comments. “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
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