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Rachel Sennott enters the digital interview and at once launches into an explanation. “Oh my God – I’m sorry!” she states, sounding genuinely apologetic. She is only a bit behind, she needs to explain. “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, this is just what one hopes to encounter. Additionally, it’s pretty expected. Anyone who know her fearlessly openly gay and unapologetically crass film Bottoms—that she penned with the director and starred in with collaborator Ayo Edebiri—will understand that she possesses much to share, be it on roles, intimacy, or the appeal of starting a teen combat group. And, by the end the recent eight-part program I Love LA, it becomes obvious that the star has additional perspectives on the challenges of young adulthood (As a millennial, Sennott serves as a relatable figure for this generation, a tale-end millennial with a knack for bridging millennials and Gen Z).

Inspirations and Creative Vision

The comparisons to the iconic series Girls can’t be avoided and Sennott admits to being enthusiastic, citing the show alongside the HBO hit, Issa Rae’s show and Atlanta as inspirations for her series, which follows the journey of a social media star Tallulah and ally and fledgling representative portrayed by Sennott. Perhaps, the largest presence on creative vision went to the HBO series, the show depicting a rising Hollywood star succeeding in an often-seedy Hollywood (notable statement: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). She started watching it during the pandemic, became “hooked”, and decided to add a fresh perspective 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 notes. The inspiration for this project emerged—partly—from personal, initially fractious, transition to LA and from the astrological phase, a much-talked-about event for followers. It was an era that involved her understand major truths, professionally and individually. “My twenties began with constant public emotional outbursts and disorganization,” she admits. “After relocating to Los Angeles in my mid-twenties, I found stability, only for things to crumble. It was almost like these biblical tests …”

Early Beginnings

Growing up in Connecticut, Sennott began writing and performing comedy while enrolled in acting at New York University (NYU) Tisch School of the Arts. “Despite trying every conventional route, I couldn’t find my footing,” 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. “It left me questioning my purpose and place.”

Sennott took matters into her own hands, taking the stage at open mics with Ayo and sharing uproarious (and distinctly) weird comedy videos digitally. A particular video, titled Baby Cult, followed several females obsessively obsessed with pregnancy; another portrayed working at the preppy clothing store Hollister as similar to being caught in a thriller. In a neat twist of fate, she met Seligman through campus film circles and eventually starring in her initial project, titled Shiva Baby, a tense comedy set at a funeral gathering with echoes of the intense thriller. A recurring idea of her career, she says, has been peers giving her a shot, instead of traditional networks. So, not the gatekeepers, then? “Not the gatekeepers”, she confirms, adding humorously: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”

Career Breakthrough

Anyone who had doubts regarding Sennott previously will certainly be kicking themselves currently. In what she calls a “incredibly circular” story, she seems to have created her dream vehicle. A few years back she posted a clip titled “it’s LA” on the internet, in which she mocked Hollywood trailers (“Everyone’s hooked on something”). Now, she’s a lead creator (with her partner) of a comedy about Angelenos balancing advantages of digital stardom (such as celebrating at Elijah Wood’s house) with its pitfalls (your friend being suspected of being a drug-addled thief, and potentially becoming a risky outcast). It would be tempting to create a program about digital influence that was horribly aspirational—or, worse, one that mocked at those depicted. I Love LA avoids both, making for a representation of affluent twentysomething life that’s candid about the mess and the shine.

Balanced Perspective

“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