Rachel Sennott on the side-splitting series depicting the chaotic glamour of Gen Z existence
The star appears on the digital interview and at once begins an apology. “Apologies for the delay!” she says, sounding really remorseful. She is only a bit behind, she feels compelled to clarify. “I tend to talk too much during calls. “Earlier calls made me late—I just can’t stop chatting!” Thankfully, for a writer, that’s exactly what you want to experience. Besides, it’s quite predictable. Those who know her boldly queer and outspoken movie titled Bottoms—that she co-wrote with Emma Seligman and featured in alongside close companion Ayo Edebiri—can understand that Sennott holds plenty to share, ranging from about identity, sex, or the appeal of starting a high-school combat group. Furthermore, once you finish her new seasonal show I Love LA, it is clear that she holds additional thoughts about the struggles of young adulthood (At 30, Sennott represents a bridge for this generation, a tale-end millennial with a knack for connecting both generations).
Guiding Lights and Artistic Direction
Parallels to Lena Dunham’s Girls are inevitable and the actress is an admirer, referencing it in addition to Sex and the City, Insecure and Donald Glover’s series as inspirations for the project, which follows the journey of online personality Tallulah and close companion and new talent manager Sennott’s character. Notably, the most significant presence on the moodboard went to the popular sitcom, that HBO sitcom focusing on an emerging A-list actor succeeding in a corrupt entertainment industry (notable statement: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). Sennott began viewing it throughout the pandemic, became “obsessed”, and resolved 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 explains. The idea for this project came—in part—from firsthand, originally difficult, transition to Los Angeles and from the saturn return, a frequently discussed occurrence for enthusiasts. It was a phase that involved her understand major truths, in her career and in private life. “In my early 20s I was so messy, crying in public everywhere, all the time,” she says. “In my mid-20s, I moved to LA and got settled. And then I felt like everything started to just fall apart. “It resembled a series of extreme challenges…”
Humble Origins
Raised in Connecticut, Sennott started creating and acting stand-up while pursuing 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. “Theatre productions at school also didn’t accept me. And I just felt like, what am I doing here?”
She decided to act independently, appearing at open mics with Edebiri and sharing hysterical (and decidedly) bizarre skits digitally. One, titled Baby Cult, followed characters obsessively fixated on motherhood; another portrayed working at the preppy clothing store Hollister as like being caught in a horror film. By chance, she encountered Emma through NYU’s movie community and ended up starring in her initial project, Shiva Baby, a tense film set at a religious event with hints of the intense thriller. 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? “Definitely not them”, she emphasizes, stating amusedly: “They prefer we don’t succeed.”
Manifesting Dreams
Individuals who had doubts regarding Sennott earlier will surely be feeling foolish currently. Through she calls a “astonishingly complete” development, she seems to have achieved her dream vehicle. Previously she shared content called about Los Angeles on the internet, in which she lampooned Hollywood trailers (“Substance abuse is rampant here”). Six years on, she’s the co-showrunner (with Emma Barrie) of a series about Angelenos balancing benefits of online celebrity (such as partying at Elijah Wood’s house) with drawbacks (your client being accused of being a drug-addled criminal, and possibly becoming a unreliable outcast). One might tempting to create a series about internet celebrity that was extremely glamorous—or, worse, one that punched down at the characters. The series steers clear of each, making for a depiction of advantaged young adult life that’s candid about the grot and the glamour.
Empathetic Approach
“Many programs portray youth and online life with disdain and mockery,” 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