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Rachel Sennott joins the video call and immediately launches into an excuse. “Oh my God – I’m sorry!” she says, seeming genuinely apologetic. She is only a bit behind, she wants to justify. “I have such a problem, because I’m a yapper on the phone. “Earlier calls made me late—I just can’t stop chatting!” Luckily, for a writer, that’s just what is ideal to encounter. Besides, it’s quite unsurprising. Viewers familiar with her boldly openly gay and brash project Bottoms—that she penned with the director and featured in alongside collaborator the talented actress—would already know that she possesses a lot to share, ranging from about identity, intimacy, or the appeal of starting a teen brawl society. Plus, by the end her new eight-part HBO series titled I Love LA, it is clear that she holds even more thoughts on the darker side of Gen Z life (Now in her thirties, she represents an honorary member of the gang, a tale-end millennial skilled for connecting different age groups).

Inspirations and Creative Vision

Parallels to the iconic series Girls are inevitable and the actress admits to being a fan, naming the show together with the classic series, Insecure and Donald Glover’s series as influences for her series, which details the struggles of online personality played by Odessa A’Zion and close companion who is also aspiring agent Sennott’s character. Perhaps, the largest spot on concept was reserved for the popular sitcom, the show depicting an up-and-coming A-list actor making his way in a corrupt LA scene (choice quote: “happiness eludes everyone but failures in this city”). Sennott began viewing it during lockdown, became “obsessed”, and decided to create a new version on it “with female and queer audiences in mind”.

“I wanted to make a show where the internet, not Hollywood, was the industry, because my career started online,” she notes. The inspiration for this project emerged—partly—from firsthand, initially rocky, transition to Los Angeles and from her saturn return, a popular occurrence for followers. It was a phase that involved her grasp some big insights, work-wise and in private life. “In my early 20s I was so messy, crying in public everywhere, all the time,” she says. “In my mid-20s, I moved to LA and got settled. And then I felt like everything started to just fall apart. It was almost like these biblical tests …”

Humble Origins

Brought up in New England, the star commenced developing and showcasing stand-up while pursuing acting at NYU’s Tisch. “I followed traditional paths to get on stage, but nothing clicked,” she states. “I tried out for all the NYU comedy groups, and got rejected from all of them. “Theatre productions at school also didn’t accept me. “It left me questioning my purpose and place.”

She decided to act independently, performing at open mics with Ayo and sharing hysterical (and decidedly) bizarre comedy videos online. A particular video, Baby Cult, followed characters fetishistically drawn to motherhood; a different one imagined working at the brand Hollister as like being stuck in a thriller. Interestingly, she met Seligman through NYU’s movie community and ended up appearing in her initial project, Shiva Baby, a stressful comedy set at a funeral gathering with hints of the Safdie brothers’ movie. A recurring idea of her career, she says, has been people her own age offering opportunities, as opposed to the industry at large. So, not the gatekeepers, then? “Definitely not them”, she confirms, stating with a laugh: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”

Career Breakthrough

Those who had doubts regarding Sennott previously will likely be feeling foolish today. In what she calls a “incredibly circular” development, she has created the perfect project. A few years back she posted a clip titled on LA life on the internet, in which she lampooned movie previews (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Now, she’s the co-showrunner (with Emma Barrie) of a comedy about Angelenos balancing benefits of online celebrity (such as partying at a celebrity’s house) with its pitfalls (your associate being accused of being a substance-abusing thief, and potentially becoming a unreliable persona non grata). One might tempting to produce a show about online fame that was extremely glamorous—or, more problematic, one that punched down at its subjects. I Love LA does neither, resulting in a representation of privileged millennial life that’s frank about the grot and the shine.

Nuanced Portrayal

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