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Rachel Sennott joins the video call and at once launches into an excuse. “Apologies for the delay!” she states, sounding genuinely regretful. She is only slightly late, she needs to clarify. “I tend to talk too much during calls. I had two calls before this, and I’m like, I’ve gotta stop talking!” Fortunately, during an interview, that’s exactly what you want to hear. Additionally, it’s fairly expected. Those familiar with the unapologetically queer and unapologetically crass project titled Bottoms—which she penned with Emma Seligman and appeared in together with close companion Ayo Edebiri—would understand that Sennott possesses a lot to share, ranging from about roles, sex, or the pros of forming a youth combat group. Furthermore, after watching her new seasonal program titled I Love LA, it is clear that she has additional perspectives regarding the challenges of young adulthood (At 30, she represents a bridge for this generation, a tale-end millennial adept for straddling different age groups).

Guiding Lights and Storytelling Approach

Likenesses to the iconic series Girls naturally arise and the actress admits to being a fan, naming it together with the classic series, Insecure and the innovative program as guides for her series, which details the travails of a social media star Tallulah and close companion who is also new talent manager Sennott’s character. Notably, the biggest presence on concept belonged to the popular sitcom, the program focusing on an up-and-coming Hollywood star making his way in an often-seedy LA scene (choice quote: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). She started watching it throughout COVID-19, became “obsessed”, and chose to add a fresh perspective on it “targeting women and LGBTQ+ viewers”.

“My aim was to focus on digital fame over traditional entertainment, as my own beginnings were on the web,” she explains. The inspiration for the series emerged—to some extent—from firsthand, initially rocky, relocation to LA and from her saturn return, a much-talked-about phenomenon for enthusiasts. This represented a phase that saw her understand major insights, work-wise and personally. “In my early 20s I was so messy, crying in public everywhere, all the time,” she recalls. “In my mid-20s, I moved to LA and got settled. And then I felt like everything started to just fall apart. “The struggles felt almost mythic in scale…”

Humble Origins

Raised in the East Coast, Sennott started creating and acting comedy while studying theatre at New York University (NYU) Tisch School of the Arts. “Despite trying every conventional route, I couldn’t find my footing,” she states. “Every campus humor group turned me down after tryouts.” “None of the university plays cast me either.” And I just felt like, what am I doing here?”

Sennott took matters into her own hands, performing at amateur nights with Edebiri and posting hysterical (and distinctly) weird skits on the internet. One, Baby Cult, depicted characters intensely drawn to motherhood; another imagined working at the preppy clothing store Hollister as akin to being caught in a scary movie. Interestingly, she connected with Emma through the university’s film scene and ultimately appearing in her directorial debut, Shiva Baby, a stressful comedy set at a religious event with shades of the intense thriller. The big theme of her path, she says, has been peers supporting her, as opposed to established gatekeepers. So, not the gatekeepers, then? “They were not involved”, she repeats, stating with a laugh: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”

Rising Success

Those who had doubts regarding her previously will surely be feeling foolish currently. In what she labels a “wild, full-circle” turn of events, she seems to have manifested an ideal role. In 2019 she uploaded a video named “it’s LA” online, in which she parodied movie previews (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Six years on, she’s a lead creator (with Emma Barrie) of a comedy about city dwellers managing benefits of internet fame (such as socializing at a celebrity’s house) with its pitfalls (your client being labeled as being a intoxicated thief, and perhaps becoming a unreliable pariah). One might easy to make a series about online fame that was horribly idealized—or, even less favorable, one that belittled at the characters. I Love LA avoids both, resulting in a representation of affluent twentysomething living that’s honest about the mess and the appeal.

Balanced Perspective

“Many programs portray youth and online life with disdain and mockery,” 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