Rachel Sennott appears on the online meeting and right away starts an excuse. “Oh my God – I’m sorry!” she exclaims, sounding genuinely regretful. Despite being only a couple of minutes late, she wants to clarify. “I have such a problem, because I’m a yapper on the phone. I had two calls before this, and I’m like, I’ve gotta stop talking!” Luckily, for a writer, this is exactly what is ideal to hear. Additionally, it’s fairly predictable. Those familiar with her unapologetically LGBTQ+ and unapologetically crass project Bottoms—which she penned with her creative partner and featured in alongside her friend Ayo Edebiri—would be aware that Sennott possesses much to say, ranging from about gender, sex, or the pros of starting a youth fight club. And, after watching her recent seasonal show titled I Love LA, viewers realize that she holds even more thoughts about the darker side of modern youth (Now in her thirties, Sennott is a bridge for this generation, straddling eras adept for bridging both generations).
Guiding Lights and Creative Vision
Parallels to Lena Dunham’s groundbreaking show can’t be avoided and Sennott readily acknowledges enthusiastic, citing it alongside the classic series, Issa Rae’s show and the innovative program as inspirations for I Love LA, which details the journey of an influencer played by Odessa A’Zion and ally and new agent portrayed by Sennott. Perhaps, the most significant spot on the moodboard belonged to Entourage, that program depicting an emerging A-list actor making his way in a corrupt Hollywood (memorable line: “happiness eludes everyone but failures in this city”). She began viewing it amid the pandemic, became “hooked”, and decided to add a fresh perspective on it “for the girls and the gays”.
“My aim was to focus on digital fame over traditional entertainment, as my own beginnings were on the web,” she explains. The concept for the series originated—in part—from firsthand, originally fractious, relocation to Los Angeles and from the astrological phase, a much-talked-about occurrence for astrology heads. This represented a time that saw her learn some big life lessons, professionally and in private life. “My twenties began with constant public emotional outbursts and disorganization,” she admits. “In my mid-20s, I moved to LA and got settled. And then I felt like everything started to just fall apart. It was almost like these biblical tests …”
Humble Origins
Growing up in Connecticut, Sennott started creating and acting humor while studying 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. And I just felt like, what am I doing here?”
Sennott took matters into her own hands, performing at amateur nights with her friend and uploading uproarious (and very) unconventional skits digitally. One, Baby Cult, depicted characters obsessively drawn to pregnancy; a different one imagined being employed at the preppy clothing store Hollister as akin to being trapped in a scary movie. In a neat twist of fate, she connected with Seligman through NYU’s movie community and ultimately appearing in her directorial debut, Shiva Baby, an anxious film set at a Jewish wake with echoes of the intense thriller. The central motif of her journey, she notes, has been people her own age supporting her, as opposed to traditional networks. So, not the gatekeepers, then? “Definitely not them”, she repeats, continuing amusedly: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”
Career Breakthrough
Those who were skeptical about Sennott previously will surely be kicking themselves now. In what she labels a “wild, full-circle” story, she appears to created an ideal role. Previously she uploaded a clip called about Los Angeles on the internet, in which she parodied Hollywood trailers (“Everyone’s hooked on something”). Years later, she’s executive producer (with the co-writer) of a show about Angelenos juggling the perks of online celebrity (such as partying at a celebrity’s house) with drawbacks (your friend being suspected of being a substance-abusing stealer, and potentially becoming a risky persona non grata). One might easy to create a show about online fame that was overly glamorous—or, worse, one that mocked at its subjects. This show does neither, resulting in a representation of affluent young adult existence that’s honest about the grot and the glamour.
Nuanced Portrayal
“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
