Rachel Sennott joins the video call and at once starts an apology. “Oh my God – I’m sorry!” she exclaims, sounding really apologetic. Although she's only a bit delayed, she wants to clarify. “I tend to talk too much during calls. “Previous discussions went over, and I realized I talk too much!” Luckily, for a writer, this is exactly what you want to hear. Moreover, it’s quite unsurprising. Those who have seen the boldly LGBTQ+ and brash film Bottoms—that Sennott penned with her creative partner and appeared in with her friend the talented actress—would be aware that Sennott has plenty to discuss, be it on identity, sex, or the pros of forming a high-school brawl society. Furthermore, once you finish her new multi-episode program titled I Love LA, viewers realize that she has additional insights regarding the struggles of young adulthood (As a millennial, Sennott is an honorary member for this generation, a tale-end millennial with a knack for bridging both generations).
Influences and Creative Vision
The comparisons to Lena Dunham’s groundbreaking show can’t be avoided and the actress readily acknowledges an admirer, naming the show together with the classic series, Issa Rae’s show and Atlanta as influences for her series, which follows the struggles of an influencer Tallulah and ally who is also aspiring representative Maia. However, the biggest presence on the moodboard belonged to Entourage, the program focusing on an emerging Hollywood star navigating in a gritty LA scene (choice quote: “happiness eludes everyone but failures in this city”). Sennott discovered it throughout lockdown, became “obsessed”, and chose to create a new version 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 inspiration for I Love LA originated—to some extent—from firsthand, initially difficult, transition to Tinseltown and from the cosmic event, a popular event for astrology heads. This represented a time that saw her learn significant insights, in her career and personally. “My twenties began with constant public emotional outbursts and disorganization,” she recalls. “In my mid-20s, I moved to LA and got settled. And then I felt like everything started to just fall apart. “It resembled a series of extreme challenges…”
Starting Out
Growing up in the East Coast, the star started creating and acting humor while enrolled in theatre at NYU’s Tisch. “I went through all the proper channels to try to perform, and they weren’t gelling,” she says. “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. And I just felt like, what am I doing here?”
Sennott decided to act independently, performing at amateur nights with Ayo and posting hilarious (and distinctly) bizarre online content digitally. A particular video, Baby Cult, depicted characters intensely fixated on motherhood; a different one envisioned working at a trendy retail outlet as akin to being stuck in a scary movie. In a neat twist of fate, she encountered Emma through the university’s film scene and ultimately featuring in her directorial debut, Shiva Baby, a stressful comedy set at a religious event with hints of the Safdie brothers’ movie. The big theme of her journey, she notes, has been people her own age supporting her, as opposed to established gatekeepers. Does that mean bypassing the usual powers? “Definitely not them”, she confirms, adding humorously: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”
Career Breakthrough
Anyone who had doubts about her previously will surely be kicking themselves now. In what she calls a “incredibly circular” development, she has created an ideal role. In 2019 she uploaded a clip named “it’s LA” on social media, in which she lampooned film promos (“Everyone’s hooked on something”). Six years on, she’s the co-showrunner (with the co-writer) of a show about Angelenos managing advantages of internet fame (such as socializing at a famous actor’s house) with downsides (your friend being suspected of being a substance-abusing thief, and possibly becoming a “brand unsafe” persona non grata). It would be simple to make a series about internet celebrity that was overly glamorous—or, even less favorable, one that belittled at its subjects. This show does neither, making for a depiction of affluent millennial existence that’s frank about the chaos 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
