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Rachel Sennott enters the video call and immediately starts an excuse. “Oh my God – I’m sorry!” she states, seeming truly regretful. She is only a bit late, she wants to clarify. “I tend to talk too much during calls. “Earlier calls made me late—I just can’t stop chatting!” Thankfully, during an interview, that’s precisely what is ideal to hear. Besides, it’s fairly expected. Those who have seen the fearlessly LGBTQ+ and brash movie Bottoms—which Sennott co-wrote with the director and featured in together with collaborator Ayo Edebiri—will understand that Sennott has a lot to say, whether on gender, sex, or the appeal of forming a youth combat group. Plus, after watching the new multi-episode show titled I Love LA, viewers realize that the star holds further insights regarding the challenges of modern youth (As a millennial, she is an honorary member to younger audiences, on the cusp skilled for connecting different age groups).

Influences and Creative Vision

Parallels to the iconic series Girls naturally arise and the actress readily acknowledges enthusiastic, citing it in addition to Sex and the City, the acclaimed comedy and Atlanta as influences for her series, which tracks the struggles of a social media star played by Odessa A’Zion and her friend who is also aspiring agent Sennott’s character. Notably, the largest spot on the moodboard went to the popular sitcom, the program about a rising celebrity making his way in an often-seedy Hollywood (notable statement: “nobody’s happy in this town except for the losers”). Sennott discovered it during the pandemic, became “hooked”, and resolved 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 says. The concept for this project originated—in part—from personal, initially difficult, transition to Tinseltown and from her cosmic event, a frequently discussed occurrence for enthusiasts. This represented an era that saw her understand significant life lessons, in her career and individually. “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

Brought up in the East Coast, the star began writing and performing humor while enrolled in acting at a prestigious arts school. “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.” “Theatre productions at school also didn’t accept me. And I just felt like, what am I doing here?”

Sennott decided to act independently, appearing at amateur nights with Ayo and sharing hysterical (and very) weird comedy videos digitally. A particular video, Baby Cult, followed a group of women fetishistically fixated on motherhood; a different one portrayed working at the brand Hollister as akin to being stuck in a scary movie. By chance, she met Emma through the university’s film scene and ended up starring in her first film, titled Shiva Baby, an anxious dramedy set at a religious event with hints of the intense thriller. The big theme of her journey, she says, has been contemporaries giving her a shot, rather than traditional networks. So the old guard wasn’t helpful? “Not the gatekeepers”, she confirms, adding with a laugh: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”

Career Breakthrough

Those who had doubts regarding Sennott earlier will surely be kicking themselves now. As part of she labels a “incredibly circular” turn of events, she appears to created her dream vehicle. Previously she uploaded a video named “it’s LA” online, in which she lampooned film promos (“Everyone’s hooked on something”). Now, she’s executive producer (with Emma Barrie) of a show about city dwellers juggling advantages of digital stardom (such as socializing at Elijah Wood’s house) with its pitfalls (your associate being accused of being a substance-abusing stealer, and perhaps becoming a “brand unsafe” pariah). Some could tempting to make a program about internet celebrity that was horribly aspirational—or, worse, one that punched down at the characters. The series avoids both, making for a portrait of affluent millennial existence that’s candid about the mess and the appeal.

Empathetic Approach

“There have been a lot of shows that depict young people and their relationship to the internet in this very condescending, hateful way,” 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