Rachel Sennott enters the video call and right away launches into an apology. “Apologies for the delay!” she states, seeming truly remorseful. She is only a bit behind, she needs to explain. “My phone conversations always run long.” “Earlier calls made me late—I just can’t stop chatting!” Fortunately, for a writer, this is exactly what you want to experience. Besides, it’s quite predictable. Anyone familiar with the fearlessly openly gay and unapologetically crass project titled Bottoms—which she co-wrote with her creative partner and starred in alongside collaborator Ayo Edebiri—can understand that Sennott has much to share, whether about roles, relationships, or the appeal of forming a youth fight club. And, after watching the recent seasonal program titled I Love LA, it is clear that the star has further perspectives on the darker side of modern youth (Now in her thirties, she represents a relatable figure for this generation, straddling eras adept for bridging different age groups).
Influences and Creative Vision
The comparisons to Lena Dunham’s groundbreaking show naturally arise and the actress readily acknowledges an admirer, naming the show alongside the HBO hit, the acclaimed comedy and the innovative program as inspirations for I Love LA, which tracks the journey of online personality Tallulah and her friend who is also new agent portrayed by Sennott. However, the biggest influence on the moodboard was reserved for Entourage, the program focusing on a rising celebrity succeeding in a corrupt entertainment industry (choice quote: “happiness eludes everyone but failures in this city”). Sennott started watching it during lockdown, became “captivated”, and decided to put her own twist on it “for the girls and the gays”.
“I sought to highlight online platforms as the new industry, since my professional journey launched there,” she says. The inspiration for this project emerged—partly—from firsthand, initially fractious, transition to Tinseltown and from her astrological phase, a popular event for followers. That period marked a time that involved her grasp significant life lessons, in her career and individually. “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 began developing and showcasing comedy while pursuing acting at NYU’s Tisch. “Despite trying every conventional route, I couldn’t find my footing,” she states. “Auditions for university comedy troupes led to universal rejection. “Theatre productions at school also didn’t accept me. “It left me questioning my purpose and place.”
She took matters into her own hands, taking the stage at open mics with Ayo and posting hysterical (and distinctly) unconventional online content digitally. One, Baby Cult, followed several females fetishistically obsessed with having babies; a different one envisioned being employed at the preppy clothing store Hollister as similar to being trapped in a scary movie. In a neat twist of fate, she met Seligman through campus film circles and ended up featuring in her initial project, titled Shiva Baby, a tense film set at a funeral gathering with echoes of the Safdie brothers’ movie. The big theme of her career, she says, has been peers giving her a shot, as opposed to the industry at large. So, not the gatekeepers, then? “Definitely not them”, she repeats, continuing amusedly: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”
Rising Success
Anyone who questioned about her then will surely be feeling foolish currently. As part of she calls a “incredibly circular” story, she seems to have manifested an ideal role. In 2019 she shared a clip named “it’s LA” online, in which she mocked Hollywood trailers (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Six years on, she’s a lead creator (with her partner) of a show about city dwellers balancing the perks of digital stardom (such as celebrating at a celebrity’s house) with downsides (your client being accused of being a substance-abusing stealer, and perhaps becoming a unreliable outcast). It would be tempting to create a program about online fame that was horribly idealized—or, even less favorable, one that mocked at the characters. I Love LA does neither, making for a representation of privileged twentysomething living that’s frank about the chaos and the glamour.
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 observes. “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
