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Rachel Sennott joins the video call and right away starts an excuse. “Apologies for the delay!” she says, appearing really remorseful. Although she's only slightly late, she needs to clarify. “I have such a problem, because I’m a yapper on the phone. “Previous discussions went over, and I realized I talk too much!” Luckily, during an interview, this is precisely what one hopes to hear. Additionally, it’s pretty predictable. Anyone familiar with the fearlessly queer and outspoken project titled Bottoms—which she penned with her creative partner and appeared in together with close companion The Bear’s standout—can be aware that she possesses much to say, ranging from on roles, relationships, or the merits of creating a teen combat group. And, by the end her new eight-part show I Love LA, it is clear that she holds further thoughts about the struggles of Gen Z life (Now in her thirties, Sennott represents a relatable figure of the gang, a tale-end millennial with a knack for bridging both generations).

Influences and Creative Vision

Parallels to the iconic series Girls are inevitable and Sennott readily acknowledges a fan, referencing it together with the HBO hit, Issa Rae’s show and the innovative program as inspirations for her series, which follows the struggles of a social media star played by Odessa A’Zion and her friend and fledgling talent manager Sennott’s character. Perhaps, the most significant spot on the moodboard was reserved for the HBO series, the program focusing on an up-and-coming A-list actor making his way in a corrupt Hollywood (memorable line: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). Sennott started watching it amid lockdown, became “hooked”, and decided to add a fresh perspective 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 I Love LA originated—in part—from firsthand, at first fractious, transition to Los Angeles and from the astrological phase, a frequently discussed phenomenon for enthusiasts. This represented a phase that saw her learn major insights, professionally and personally. “In my early 20s I was so messy, crying in public everywhere, all the time,” she admits. “After relocating to Los Angeles in my mid-twenties, I found stability, only for things to crumble. It was almost like these biblical tests …”

Humble Origins

Brought up in the East Coast, the star commenced developing and showcasing humor while enrolled in acting at a prestigious arts school. “Despite trying every conventional route, I couldn’t find my footing,” she states. “I tried out for all the NYU comedy groups, and got rejected from all of them. I tried out for all the NYU plays and didn’t make it into any of them. And I just felt like, what am I doing here?”

She decided to act independently, appearing at amateur nights with Ayo and uploading uproarious (and distinctly) unconventional comedy videos digitally. A particular video, titled Baby Cult, depicted characters intensely fixated on motherhood; a different one imagined being employed at the preppy clothing store Hollister as similar to being trapped in a horror film. In a neat twist of fate, she connected with Seligman through the university’s film scene and ultimately appearing in her first film, Shiva Baby, a stressful comedy set at a Jewish wake with echoes of Uncut Gems. A recurring idea of her path, she says, has been people her own age supporting her, as opposed to established gatekeepers. So the old guard wasn’t helpful? “Not the gatekeepers”, she confirms, stating with a laugh: “They prefer we don’t succeed.”

Career Breakthrough

Anyone who were skeptical about Sennott then will certainly be regretting it now. In what she describes as a “wild, full-circle” development, she appears to manifested the perfect project. A few years back she posted a video called about Los Angeles on the internet, in which she lampooned Hollywood trailers (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Six years on, she’s executive producer (with the co-writer) of a series about city dwellers managing advantages of online celebrity (such as celebrating at Elijah Wood’s house) with drawbacks (your friend being labeled as being a drug-addled thief, and perhaps becoming a “brand unsafe” outcast). One might simple to create a show about digital influence that was horribly aspirational—or, even less favorable, one that belittled at the characters. I Love LA avoids both, resulting in a depiction of affluent twentysomething living that’s candid about the chaos and the shine.

Nuanced Portrayal

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