Rachel Sennott exploring the hilarious series portraying the chaotic appeal of today's youth lifestyle
The performer joins the digital interview and right away launches into an excuse. “Oh my God – I’m sorry!” she says, seeming genuinely apologetic. She is only a couple of minutes behind, she wants to clarify. “My phone conversations always run long.” “Previous discussions went over, and I realized I talk too much!” Thankfully, during an interview, that’s precisely what is ideal to hear. Moreover, it’s pretty predictable. Viewers who have seen the boldly queer and unapologetically crass movie titled Bottoms—which Sennott collaborated on with the director and starred in alongside close companion Ayo Edebiri—would be aware that Sennott possesses plenty to discuss, ranging from on identity, relationships, or the pros of starting a teen fight club. And, once you finish the latest multi-episode show I Love LA, it is clear that the star carries further perspectives about the darker side of modern youth (As a millennial, Sennott is a relatable figure for this generation, on the cusp adept for connecting millennials and Gen Z).
Influences and Artistic Direction
Likenesses to the iconic series Girls can’t be avoided and the actress is a fan, naming the show alongside the HBO hit, the acclaimed comedy and Atlanta as influences for the project, which tracks the struggles of an influencer played by Odessa A’Zion and her friend who is also aspiring talent manager Sennott’s character. Perhaps, the biggest presence on creative vision went to Entourage, that program depicting an emerging celebrity succeeding in an often-seedy entertainment industry (notable statement: “nobody’s happy in this town except for the losers”). Sennott started watching it amid the pandemic, became “hooked”, 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 says. The inspiration for this project came—in part—from firsthand, at first fractious, move to LA and from her cosmic event, a frequently discussed occurrence for enthusiasts. It was an era that included her grasp significant life lessons, professionally and in private life. “During my younger years, I was chaotic, often breaking down in public,” she says. “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 Connecticut, Sennott commenced writing and performing humor while studying acting at New York University (NYU) Tisch School of the Arts. “Despite trying every conventional route, I couldn’t find my footing,” she states. “Auditions for university comedy troupes led to universal rejection. I tried out for all the NYU plays and didn’t make it into any of them. “It left me questioning my purpose and place.”
Sennott decided to act independently, performing at open mics with her friend and sharing uproarious (and decidedly) weird online content on the internet. One, Baby Cult, depicted several females intensely fixated on having babies; another portrayed working at the brand Hollister as similar to being stuck in a scary movie. By chance, she connected with Emma through NYU’s movie community and eventually appearing in her first film, titled Shiva Baby, an anxious comedy set at a religious event with echoes of the Safdie brothers’ movie. The big theme of her career, she notes, has been people her own age offering opportunities, rather than established gatekeepers. Does that mean bypassing the usual powers? “They were not involved”, she emphasizes, continuing with a laugh: “They don’t want us to win.”
Career Breakthrough
Anyone who were skeptical about her earlier will certainly be feeling foolish now. Through she calls a “incredibly circular” turn of events, she appears to achieved her dream vehicle. In 2019 she uploaded content named about Los Angeles on social media, in which she lampooned movie previews (“Substance abuse is rampant here”). Six years on, she’s the co-showrunner (with her partner) of a show about city dwellers juggling the perks of online celebrity (such as socializing at Elijah Wood’s house) with downsides (your client being labeled as being a intoxicated stealer, and potentially becoming a “brand unsafe” outcast). Some could simple to make a series about online fame that was overly aspirational—or, worse, one that mocked at those depicted. This show does neither, creating a representation of advantaged millennial existence that’s frank about the mess and the appeal.
Balanced Perspective
“There have been a lot of shows that depict young people and their relationship to the internet in this very condescending, hateful way,” 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