Rachel Sennott enters the video call and right away starts an explanation. “I can’t believe I’m late!” she states, sounding genuinely remorseful. Despite being only a couple of minutes late, she needs to explain. “I tend to talk too much during calls. “Previous discussions went over, and I realized I talk too much!” Thankfully, for a writer, this is precisely what one hopes to encounter. Additionally, it’s fairly expected. Those familiar with the unapologetically openly gay and unapologetically crass project titled Bottoms—which Sennott collaborated on with her creative partner and featured in alongside her friend Ayo Edebiri—will understand that she holds a lot to say, ranging from on roles, intimacy, or the appeal of forming a youth combat group. Furthermore, by the end her new multi-episode HBO series titled I Love LA, viewers realize that she holds further thoughts about the darker side of young adulthood (Now in her thirties, she serves as a bridge of the gang, on the cusp adept for bridging different age groups).
Inspirations and Storytelling Approach
Parallels to the iconic series Girls naturally arise and Sennott is enthusiastic, referencing the show alongside the classic series, Insecure and Donald Glover’s series as influences for the project, which tracks the struggles of online personality Tallulah and close companion and fledgling representative Maia. Notably, the most significant influence on concept belonged to the popular sitcom, the HBO sitcom focusing on a rising Hollywood star succeeding in an often-seedy entertainment industry (memorable line: “happiness eludes everyone but failures in this city”). She started watching it throughout the pandemic, became “hooked”, and resolved to add a fresh perspective on it “targeting women and LGBTQ+ viewers”.
“I wanted to make a show where the internet, not Hollywood, was the industry, because my career started online,” she explains. The idea for I Love LA originated—partly—from firsthand, originally fractious, move to LA and from her saturn return, a frequently discussed event for astrology heads. This represented a time that involved her understand major truths, professionally and in private life. “My twenties began with constant public emotional outbursts and disorganization,” she admits. “Settling in LA during my mid-twenties brought calm, but soon everything unraveled.” “The struggles felt almost mythic in scale…”
Humble Origins
Brought up in New England, the star started writing and performing comedy while studying theatre at a prestigious arts school. “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. “It left me questioning my purpose and place.”
Sennott seized control, appearing at amateur nights with Ayo and sharing hilarious (and decidedly) weird skits online. A particular video, titled Baby Cult, centered on a group of women intensely drawn to having babies; a different one imagined working at the preppy clothing store Hollister as similar to being caught in a horror film. By chance, she encountered Seligman through the university’s film scene and eventually starring in her initial project, Shiva Baby, a stressful comedy set at a funeral gathering with echoes of Uncut Gems. The central motif of her path, she notes, has been peers offering opportunities, rather than established gatekeepers. So the old guard wasn’t helpful? “Definitely not them”, she confirms, continuing humorously: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”
Manifesting Dreams
Anyone who were skeptical regarding Sennott earlier will likely be kicking themselves now. In what she labels a “incredibly circular” story, she has created her dream vehicle. A few years back she uploaded content titled about Los Angeles on social media, in which she parodied film promos (“Substance abuse is rampant here”). Now, she’s executive producer (with her partner) of a comedy about LA residents balancing advantages of internet fame (such as socializing at a famous actor’s house) with drawbacks (your associate being accused of being a intoxicated criminal, and potentially becoming a “brand unsafe” pariah). Some could easy to create a show about online fame that was extremely glamorous—or, more problematic, one that belittled at the characters. The series steers clear of each, creating a depiction of privileged young adult existence that’s honest about the grot and the shine.
Balanced Perspective
“Numerous series present younger generations and digital culture in a derogatory manner,” 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
