Rachel Sennott enters the digital interview and immediately begins an excuse. “I can’t believe I’m late!” she states, sounding truly remorseful. Although she's only slightly late, she needs to clarify. “My phone conversations always run long.” “Earlier calls made me late—I just can’t stop chatting!” Fortunately, for a writer, that’s exactly what you want to experience. Besides, it’s fairly expected. Anyone who have seen her boldly LGBTQ+ and outspoken project titled Bottoms—that Sennott collaborated on with Emma Seligman and starred in together with collaborator Ayo Edebiri—will understand that Sennott possesses plenty to say, whether about roles, intimacy, or the appeal of creating a teen brawl society. And, by the end her latest seasonal show titled I Love LA, it becomes obvious that the star carries further perspectives on the struggles of Gen Z life (At 30, Sennott is an honorary member to younger audiences, on the cusp with a knack for straddling different age groups).
Inspirations and Storytelling Approach
Likenesses to Lena Dunham’s groundbreaking show are inevitable and Sennott is enthusiastic, naming it alongside Sex and the City, the acclaimed comedy and the innovative program as guides for the project, which details the journey of a social media star Tallulah and close companion and fledgling agent Sennott’s character. Perhaps, the largest spot on creative vision belonged to the popular sitcom, the show depicting a rising Hollywood star navigating in a gritty LA scene (notable statement: “nobody’s happy in this town except for the losers”). She began viewing it amid the pandemic, became “captivated”, and decided to add a fresh perspective on it “targeting women and LGBTQ+ viewers”.
“I sought to highlight online platforms as the new industry, since my professional journey launched there,” she says. The concept for I Love LA came—partly—from personal, originally difficult, transition to Tinseltown and from her saturn return, a popular phenomenon for followers. This represented a phase that involved her learn major life lessons, 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 resembled a series of extreme challenges…”
Starting Out
Raised in the East Coast, Sennott commenced writing and performing comedy while enrolled in performance at New York University (NYU) Tisch School of the Arts. “I followed traditional paths to get on stage, but nothing clicked,” she explains. “Auditions for university comedy troupes led to universal rejection. “Theatre productions at school also didn’t accept me. “It left me questioning my purpose and place.”
Sennott took matters into her own hands, performing at live shows with Edebiri and posting uproarious (and distinctly) bizarre comedy videos online. A particular video, titled Baby Cult, centered on characters fetishistically fixated on having babies; another portrayed being employed at a trendy retail outlet as akin to being caught in a scary movie. Interestingly, she connected with Seligman through the university’s film scene and ended up starring in her first film, Shiva Baby, a stressful dramedy set at a religious event with shades of the intense thriller. The big theme of her path, she explains, has been people her own age offering opportunities, instead of established gatekeepers. So, not the gatekeepers, then? “Definitely not them”, she repeats, continuing amusedly: “They don’t want us to win.”
Career Breakthrough
Those who were skeptical regarding Sennott previously will certainly be kicking themselves currently. In what she describes as a “astonishingly complete” story, she seems to have created the perfect project. In 2019 she uploaded content called on LA life on the internet, in which she lampooned film promos (“Everyone’s hooked on something”). Now, she’s a lead creator (with Emma Barrie) of a series about LA residents balancing benefits of internet fame (such as celebrating at Elijah Wood’s house) with downsides (your client being suspected of being a intoxicated thief, and possibly becoming a “brand unsafe” pariah). One might simple to produce a show about internet celebrity that was horribly idealized—or, even less favorable, one that belittled at its subjects. This show does neither, resulting in a portrait of privileged twentysomething existence that’s candid about the chaos and the shine.
Nuanced Portrayal
“Many programs portray youth and online life with disdain and mockery,” she says. “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
