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Rachel Sennott enters the online meeting and at once launches into an apology. “I can’t believe I’m late!” she states, sounding genuinely regretful. Although she's only slightly late, she wants 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!” Fortunately, in this context, that’s exactly what one hopes to experience. Moreover, it’s quite expected. Those who have seen her boldly LGBTQ+ and unapologetically crass movie Bottoms—which Sennott collaborated on with the director and appeared in with her friend The Bear’s standout—can already know that she has a lot to share, be it on roles, sex, or the appeal of starting a teen combat group. Furthermore, after watching the recent multi-episode HBO series I Love LA, it is clear that she holds additional thoughts regarding the challenges of young adulthood (Now in her thirties, she serves as a bridge of the gang, on the cusp with a knack for connecting different age groups).

Influences and Artistic Direction

Likenesses to Lena Dunham’s Girls can’t be avoided and Sennott is enthusiastic, naming the show alongside the classic series, Insecure and the innovative program as inspirations for the project, which details the struggles of a social media star played by Odessa A’Zion and her friend who is also new representative Maia. Notably, the largest presence on concept went to the popular sitcom, the program depicting a rising A-list actor succeeding in a corrupt Hollywood (memorable line: “nobody’s happy in this town except for the losers”). She discovered it amid the pandemic, became “hooked”, and decided to create a new version on it “targeting women and LGBTQ+ viewers”.

“I sought to highlight online platforms as the new industry, since my professional journey launched there,” she explains. The concept for the series came—in part—from firsthand, initially difficult, transition to LA and from the cosmic event, a popular event for enthusiasts. This represented an era that saw her understand significant insights, work-wise and in private life. “My twenties began with constant public emotional outbursts and disorganization,” she admits. “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 …”

Early Beginnings

Raised in the East Coast, Sennott began creating and acting stand-up while enrolled in performance at NYU’s Tisch. “I went through all the proper channels to try to perform, and they weren’t gelling,” she says. “I tried out for all the NYU comedy groups, and got rejected from all of them. “None of the university plays cast me either.” And I just felt like, what am I doing here?”

She seized control, appearing at open mics with her friend and uploading hilarious (and distinctly) bizarre comedy videos digitally. One, titled Baby Cult, centered on several females obsessively obsessed with motherhood; another envisioned working at the preppy clothing store Hollister as similar to being stuck in a horror film. By chance, she met Emma through campus film circles and ultimately appearing in her first film, Shiva Baby, an anxious comedy set at a religious event with echoes of the Safdie brothers’ movie. The big theme of her career, she explains, has been contemporaries giving her a shot, instead of the industry at large. So the old guard wasn’t helpful? “Definitely not them”, she confirms, adding with a laugh: “They don’t want us to win.”

Manifesting Dreams

Anyone who questioned regarding her earlier will likely be feeling foolish now. As part of she labels a “incredibly circular” story, she seems to have achieved the perfect project. A few years back she posted content named about Los Angeles online, in which she lampooned movie previews (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Years later, she’s the co-showrunner (with the co-writer) of a series about city dwellers managing the perks of online celebrity (such as partying at a famous actor’s house) with its pitfalls (your associate being labeled as being a intoxicated stealer, and potentially becoming a risky outcast). It would be tempting to create a series about online fame that was overly glamorous—or, more problematic, one that mocked at those depicted. I Love LA does neither, resulting in a representation of advantaged millennial life that’s candid about the mess and the appeal.

Empathetic Approach

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