🔗 Share this article

Rachel Sennott joins the video call and right away begins an excuse. “Apologies for the delay!” she exclaims, seeming truly regretful. Although she's only a couple of minutes late, she wants to clarify. “My phone conversations always run long.” I had two calls before this, and I’m like, I’ve gotta stop talking!” Fortunately, for a writer, this is exactly what is ideal to encounter. Additionally, it’s quite expected. Anyone who know the boldly LGBTQ+ and brash movie Bottoms—that she co-wrote with Emma Seligman and starred in together with collaborator the talented actress—would understand that she has a lot to share, be it on gender, intimacy, or the appeal of starting a teen fight club. And, by the end her new multi-episode program I Love LA, it is clear that she holds additional perspectives on the struggles of young adulthood (As a millennial, Sennott is a relatable figure to younger audiences, on the cusp with a knack for connecting different age groups).

Influences and Creative Vision

Likenesses to Lena Dunham’s Girls can’t be avoided and Sennott readily acknowledges a fan, citing the show alongside Sex and the City, Insecure and Atlanta as influences for the project, which details the struggles of an influencer Tallulah and ally who is also fledgling agent portrayed by Sennott. Perhaps, the biggest spot on creative vision went to Entourage, that program about a rising A-list actor navigating in an often-seedy Hollywood (choice quote: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). Sennott began viewing it throughout the pandemic, became “obsessed”, and chose to create a new version on it “with female and queer audiences in mind”.

“I wanted to make a show where the internet, not Hollywood, was the industry, because my career started online,” she explains. The concept for this project emerged—in part—from her own, originally fractious, relocation to Tinseltown and from the astrological phase, a frequently discussed event for enthusiasts. It was a phase that saw her understand some big life lessons, in her career and personally. “During my younger years, I was chaotic, often breaking down in public,” she says. “Settling in LA during my mid-twenties brought calm, but soon everything unraveled.” It was almost like these biblical tests …”

Early Beginnings

Growing up in New England, Sennott commenced creating and acting stand-up while pursuing performance at a prestigious arts school. “I followed traditional paths to get on stage, but nothing clicked,” she states. “Auditions for university comedy troupes led to universal rejection. “Theatre productions at school also didn’t accept me. And I just felt like, what am I doing here?”

Sennott took matters into her own hands, appearing at amateur nights with her friend and posting uproarious (and distinctly) bizarre comedy videos on the internet. One, Baby Cult, centered on several females obsessively fixated on pregnancy; a different one portrayed working at a trendy retail outlet as similar to being trapped in a thriller. By chance, she connected with Emma through NYU’s movie community and ended up starring in her first film, Shiva Baby, a stressful film set at a religious event with echoes of the Safdie brothers’ movie. A recurring idea of her path, she notes, has been people her own age supporting her, as opposed to established gatekeepers. Does that mean bypassing the usual powers? “Not the gatekeepers”, she confirms, continuing humorously: “They prefer we don’t succeed.”

Manifesting Dreams

Those who had doubts about Sennott previously will certainly be feeling foolish currently. In what she describes as a “wild, full-circle” story, she appears to manifested an ideal role. In 2019 she uploaded content titled “it’s LA” on the internet, in which she mocked Hollywood trailers (“Substance abuse is rampant here”). Years later, she’s the co-showrunner (with her partner) of a comedy about LA residents managing benefits of internet fame (such as celebrating at a famous actor’s house) with its pitfalls (your friend being accused of being a intoxicated criminal, and possibly becoming a risky pariah). One might tempting to produce a program about online fame that was horribly glamorous—or, more problematic, one that punched down at those depicted. The series avoids both, creating a representation of privileged millennial living that’s frank about the grot and the glamour.

Nuanced Portrayal

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