Rachel Sennott discussing her hilarious show portraying the chaotic glamour of today's youth existence
The performer enters the digital interview and at once launches into an excuse. “Oh my God – I’m sorry!” she exclaims, seeming really apologetic. Despite being only a couple of minutes behind, she feels compelled to explain. “I have such a problem, because I’m a yapper on the phone. I had two calls before this, and I’m like, I’ve gotta stop talking!” Thankfully, for a writer, that’s just what you want to encounter. Additionally, it’s pretty expected. Anyone who know the unapologetically openly gay and outspoken movie Bottoms—which Sennott co-wrote with Emma Seligman and appeared in alongside her friend Ayo Edebiri—will already know that she possesses plenty to share, whether about roles, sex, or the appeal of forming a teen fight club. Plus, once you finish her new multi-episode HBO series I Love LA, it is clear that she has additional insights on the challenges of Gen Z life (At 30, she serves as an honorary member to younger audiences, a tale-end millennial skilled for straddling different age groups).
Inspirations and Storytelling Approach
The comparisons to Lena Dunham’s Girls are inevitable and the actress admits to being enthusiastic, naming it together with Sex and the City, Insecure and Atlanta as influences for her series, which details the journey of a social media star played by Odessa A’Zion and her friend who is also fledgling talent manager Maia. Notably, the biggest presence on creative vision went to the popular sitcom, the program depicting an up-and-coming celebrity making his way in an often-seedy Hollywood (memorable line: “happiness eludes everyone but failures in this city”). Sennott began viewing it during COVID-19, became “captivated”, and chose to create a new version 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 notes. The idea for the series emerged—partly—from her own, initially fractious, transition to LA and from her cosmic event, a frequently discussed event for astrology heads. This represented a time that included her understand some big insights, in her career and individually. “During my younger years, I was chaotic, often breaking down in public,” she admits. “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…”
Starting Out
Growing up in Connecticut, Sennott commenced developing and showcasing comedy while studying theatre at a prestigious arts school. “I went through all the proper channels to try to perform, and they weren’t gelling,” she explains. “Every campus humor group turned me down after tryouts.” “Theatre productions at school also didn’t accept me. And I just felt like, what am I doing here?”
She took matters into her own hands, taking the stage at amateur nights with Ayo and sharing hysterical (and distinctly) weird comedy videos digitally. A particular video, titled Baby Cult, depicted several females fetishistically fixated on pregnancy; a different one portrayed working at the preppy clothing store Hollister as like being trapped in a thriller. By chance, she encountered Emma through the university’s film scene and ultimately featuring in her first film, Shiva Baby, a tense comedy set at a funeral gathering with echoes of Uncut Gems. The big theme of her career, she says, has been people her own age supporting her, instead of the industry at large. So, not the gatekeepers, then? “Definitely not them”, she confirms, stating humorously: “They don’t want us to win.”
Rising Success
Those who were skeptical about her then will surely be kicking themselves today. Through she labels a “astonishingly complete” story, she has achieved an ideal role. In 2019 she shared content called “it’s LA” on the internet, in which she mocked Hollywood trailers (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Six years on, she’s executive producer (with the co-writer) of a comedy about city dwellers balancing the perks of internet fame (such as celebrating at a famous actor’s house) with downsides (your friend being labeled as being a substance-abusing thief, and potentially becoming a “brand unsafe” pariah). One might tempting to produce a show about online fame that was horribly glamorous—or, even less favorable, one that punched down at its subjects. This show steers clear of each, resulting in a representation of affluent twentysomething existence that’s frank about the mess and the shine.
Nuanced Portrayal
“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