Rachel Sennott joins the digital interview and immediately begins an explanation. “Oh my God – I’m sorry!” she says, seeming genuinely remorseful. She is only slightly behind, she needs to explain. “I tend to talk too much during calls. I had two calls before this, and I’m like, I’ve gotta stop talking!” Luckily, for a writer, that’s just what is ideal to experience. Moreover, it’s fairly predictable. Viewers familiar with the boldly LGBTQ+ and outspoken project Bottoms—which Sennott co-wrote with Emma Seligman and starred in alongside close companion The Bear’s standout—will understand that she has a lot to discuss, ranging from on roles, sex, or the merits of creating a teen combat group. Furthermore, by the end the new seasonal HBO series I Love LA, it becomes obvious that she has even more insights regarding the darker side of Gen Z life (At 30, she represents an honorary member to younger audiences, on the cusp skilled for bridging millennials and Gen Z).
Inspirations and Storytelling Approach
The comparisons to Lena Dunham’s groundbreaking show are inevitable and Sennott readily acknowledges enthusiastic, referencing it in addition to the HBO hit, the acclaimed comedy and Donald Glover’s series as guides for I Love LA, which details the struggles of online personality played by Odessa A’Zion and her friend who is also aspiring agent portrayed by Sennott. Perhaps, the largest influence on concept was reserved for Entourage, the show depicting an emerging Hollywood star making his way in a gritty Hollywood (memorable line: “nobody’s happy in this town except for the losers”). She started watching it during the pandemic, became “obsessed”, and resolved 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 notes. The idea for I Love LA originated—to some extent—from personal, at first difficult, relocation to Los Angeles and from her cosmic event, a frequently discussed occurrence for astrology heads. It was a phase that included her learn major truths, professionally and personally. “In my early 20s I was so messy, crying in public everywhere, all the time,” she recalls. “After relocating to Los Angeles in my mid-twenties, I found stability, only for things to crumble. “The struggles felt almost mythic in scale…”
Starting Out
Raised in New England, Sennott began developing and showcasing comedy while pursuing acting at NYU’s Tisch. “I went through all the proper channels to try to perform, and they weren’t gelling,” she states. “Every campus humor group turned me down after tryouts.” “None of the university plays cast me either.” “I wondered why I was even there at all.”
She took matters into her own hands, taking the stage at amateur nights with Ayo and uploading hysterical (and very) weird online content on the internet. A particular video, Baby Cult, followed several females intensely obsessed with pregnancy; a different one imagined being employed at the brand Hollister as like being caught in a thriller. By chance, she met Emma through NYU’s movie community and eventually starring in her directorial debut, Shiva Baby, a stressful dramedy set at a Jewish wake with hints of the Safdie brothers’ movie. The central motif of her journey, she explains, has been people her own age giving her a shot, rather than established gatekeepers. Does that mean bypassing the usual powers? “Definitely not them”, she emphasizes, stating amusedly: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”
Manifesting Dreams
Anyone who had doubts about her previously will likely be kicking themselves now. As part of she labels a “astonishingly complete” story, she appears to manifested her dream vehicle. Previously she posted a clip called “it’s LA” on the internet, in which she parodied Hollywood trailers (“Everyone’s hooked on something”). Years later, she’s executive producer (with Emma Barrie) of a comedy about LA residents juggling benefits of internet fame (such as socializing at Elijah Wood’s house) with downsides (your friend being accused of being a drug-addled stealer, and perhaps becoming a unreliable pariah). It would be easy to make a series about internet celebrity that was horribly glamorous—or, more problematic, one that punched down at its subjects. This show avoids both, creating a depiction of privileged young adult life that’s frank about the chaos and the glamour.
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
