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Rachel Sennott appears on the video call and immediately begins an excuse. “Apologies for the delay!” she states, appearing truly apologetic. She is only a couple of minutes behind, she wants to explain. “I have such a problem, because I’m a yapper on the phone. “Earlier calls made me late—I just can’t stop chatting!” Thankfully, in this context, this is exactly what is ideal to experience. Moreover, it’s fairly unsurprising. Viewers who have seen her unapologetically queer and outspoken film Bottoms—which she collaborated on with Emma Seligman and featured in together with close companion Ayo Edebiri—can be aware that Sennott possesses plenty to share, whether on identity, intimacy, or the appeal of forming a high-school brawl society. And, by the end her recent multi-episode program titled I Love LA, it is clear that the star holds further insights about the challenges of Gen Z life (As a millennial, she represents a relatable figure of the gang, a tale-end millennial skilled for bridging both generations).

Influences and Storytelling Approach

Likenesses to Lena Dunham’s Girls are inevitable and Sennott admits to being a fan, citing it alongside Sex and the City, Issa Rae’s show and Atlanta as inspirations for her series, which tracks the journey of a social media star Tallulah and her friend who is also new agent Sennott’s character. However, the largest presence on concept went to the popular sitcom, the show focusing on an emerging Hollywood star succeeding in a corrupt Hollywood (notable statement: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). Sennott discovered it throughout COVID-19, became “obsessed”, and resolved to put her own twist on it “targeting women and LGBTQ+ viewers”.

“I sought to highlight online platforms as the new industry, since my professional journey launched there,” she explains. The inspiration for the series originated—in part—from firsthand, initially rocky, transition to Los Angeles and from her cosmic event, a popular event for enthusiasts. It was a phase that included her learn significant life lessons, professionally and in private life. “During my younger years, I was chaotic, often breaking down in public,” she says. “In my mid-20s, I moved to LA and got settled. And then I felt like everything started to just fall apart. “The struggles felt almost mythic in scale…”

Starting Out

Brought up in the East Coast, the star started creating and acting comedy while pursuing theatre at New York University (NYU) Tisch School of the Arts. “I went through all the proper channels to try to perform, and they weren’t gelling,” she explains. “Auditions for university comedy troupes led to universal rejection. 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, taking the stage at amateur nights with Ayo and uploading hysterical (and distinctly) bizarre comedy videos online. One, Baby Cult, centered on characters fetishistically obsessed with motherhood; a different one portrayed working at the brand Hollister as like being trapped in a horror film. In a neat twist of fate, she met Emma through the university’s film scene and eventually featuring in her directorial debut, Shiva Baby, a stressful dramedy set at a Jewish wake with echoes of the intense thriller. The big theme of her path, she notes, has been peers giving her a shot, as opposed to established gatekeepers. So, not the gatekeepers, then? “They were not involved”, she confirms, adding amusedly: “They don’t want us to win.”

Career Breakthrough

Anyone who questioned regarding her earlier will likely be kicking themselves now. As part of she describes as a “wild, full-circle” story, she has manifested her dream vehicle. A few years back she shared content titled “it’s LA” on the internet, in which she mocked movie previews (“Everyone’s hooked on something”). Six years on, she’s executive producer (with Emma Barrie) of a series about LA residents juggling benefits of digital stardom (such as celebrating at a famous actor’s house) with drawbacks (your friend being accused of being a drug-addled criminal, and potentially becoming a risky pariah). Some could tempting to create a series about online fame that was horribly idealized—or, worse, one that punched down at those depicted. The series does neither, resulting in a portrait of affluent young adult life that’s candid about the chaos and the shine.

Empathetic Approach

“Many programs portray youth and online life with disdain and mockery,” 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