🔗 Share this article

Rachel Sennott appears on the online meeting and immediately begins an apology. “Apologies for the delay!” she states, seeming really regretful. She is only a couple of minutes late, she wants to clarify. “I have such a problem, because I’m a yapper on the phone. “Earlier calls made me late—I just can’t stop chatting!” Fortunately, in this context, this is exactly what one hopes to hear. Moreover, it’s fairly predictable. Viewers familiar with the fearlessly LGBTQ+ and unapologetically crass film titled Bottoms—which Sennott co-wrote with her creative partner and featured in together with her friend The Bear’s standout—will understand that she holds plenty to share, be it about roles, sex, or the merits of starting a teen combat group. And, by the end the new eight-part HBO series I Love LA, it becomes obvious that the star holds even more perspectives about the challenges of young adulthood (At 30, Sennott represents an honorary member of the gang, a tale-end millennial adept for bridging millennials and Gen Z).

Inspirations and Creative Vision

Likenesses to the iconic series Girls are inevitable and the actress is an admirer, referencing the show in addition to the classic series, Issa Rae’s show and Donald Glover’s series as influences for her series, which follows the struggles of a social media star played by Odessa A’Zion and ally who is also new representative portrayed by Sennott. Notably, the biggest spot on the moodboard was reserved for the popular sitcom, the HBO sitcom depicting an up-and-coming celebrity succeeding in a corrupt LA scene (memorable line: “nobody’s happy in this town except for the losers”). Sennott started watching it during lockdown, became “captivated”, and decided to add a fresh perspective on it “targeting women and LGBTQ+ viewers”.

“I wanted to make a show where the internet, not Hollywood, was the industry, because my career started online,” she says. The idea for the series emerged—in part—from her own, originally rocky, move to Los Angeles and from the cosmic event, a popular occurrence for followers. That period marked a phase that included her understand some big truths, work-wise and individually. “During my younger years, I was chaotic, often breaking down in public,” she says. “After relocating to Los Angeles in my mid-twenties, I found stability, only for things to crumble. It was almost like these biblical tests …”

Humble Origins

Raised in New England, the star started developing and showcasing comedy while pursuing acting at NYU’s Tisch. “Despite trying every conventional route, I couldn’t find my footing,” she states. “Every campus humor group turned me down after tryouts.” “None of the university plays cast me either.” “It left me questioning my purpose and place.”

Sennott took matters into her own hands, appearing at live shows with Edebiri and uploading uproarious (and very) bizarre skits online. A particular video, Baby Cult, centered on characters fetishistically drawn to having babies; another envisioned working at the brand Hollister as similar to being trapped in a scary movie. In a neat twist of fate, she encountered Seligman through campus film circles and eventually starring in her initial project, titled Shiva Baby, an anxious comedy set at a religious event with shades of the intense thriller. The big theme of her journey, she says, has been peers supporting her, instead of traditional networks. So, not the gatekeepers, then? “They were not involved”, she repeats, continuing humorously: “They prefer we don’t succeed.”

Rising Success

Individuals who were skeptical about her previously will likely be regretting it currently. As part of she describes as a “incredibly circular” story, she has achieved an ideal role. Previously she uploaded a clip titled about Los Angeles on the internet, in which she parodied Hollywood trailers (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Six years on, she’s executive producer (with the co-writer) of a show about LA residents balancing benefits of online celebrity (such as partying at a celebrity’s house) with downsides (your associate being labeled as being a intoxicated stealer, and possibly becoming a unreliable persona non grata). One might simple to make a series about digital influence that was horribly aspirational—or, even less favorable, one that punched down at its subjects. I Love LA avoids both, resulting in a portrait of privileged millennial life that’s frank about the chaos and the appeal.

Empathetic Approach

“Numerous series present younger generations and digital culture in a derogatory manner,” 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