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Rachel Sennott joins the digital interview and right away starts an explanation. “I can’t believe I’m late!” she exclaims, appearing genuinely regretful. Although she's only slightly late, she wants to clarify. “My phone conversations always run long.” “Previous discussions went over, and I realized I talk too much!” Thankfully, for a writer, this is precisely what is ideal to encounter. Moreover, it’s pretty expected. Viewers who have seen the boldly LGBTQ+ and outspoken project titled Bottoms—which Sennott penned with her creative partner and starred in with close companion The Bear’s standout—would understand that she possesses much to say, be it on identity, sex, or the pros of forming a youth combat group. And, by the end her latest seasonal HBO series I Love LA, viewers realize that the star has further thoughts about the darker side of modern youth (At 30, Sennott represents a relatable figure for this generation, straddling eras with a knack for bridging both generations).

Influences and Artistic Direction

The comparisons to the iconic series Girls can’t be avoided and Sennott readily acknowledges an admirer, citing the show in addition to Sex and the City, Insecure and the innovative program as guides for the project, which tracks the journey of a social media star played by Odessa A’Zion and ally and new agent Maia. However, the largest presence on the moodboard went to Entourage, the HBO sitcom focusing on a rising A-list actor navigating in a corrupt entertainment industry (notable statement: “nobody’s happy in this town except for the losers”). She started watching it amid the pandemic, became “captivated”, 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 says. The idea for the series came—partly—from firsthand, originally rocky, move to LA and from the cosmic event, a frequently discussed occurrence for astrology heads. This represented a phase that included her learn major truths, professionally and personally. “In my early 20s I was so messy, crying in public everywhere, all the time,” she recalls. “After relocating to Los Angeles in my mid-twenties, I found stability, only for things to crumble. “It resembled a series of extreme challenges…”

Humble Origins

Brought up in Connecticut, the star began creating and acting humor while pursuing acting at NYU’s Tisch. “I went through all the proper channels to try to perform, and they weren’t gelling,” she explains. “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?”

Sennott took matters into her own hands, appearing at amateur nights with Ayo and posting uproarious (and distinctly) unconventional skits on the internet. One, titled Baby Cult, centered on a group of women fetishistically drawn to having babies; a different one imagined working at the preppy clothing store Hollister as similar to being stuck in a scary movie. Interestingly, she connected with Emma through the university’s film scene and ultimately featuring in her first film, Shiva Baby, a stressful dramedy set at a funeral gathering with echoes of Uncut Gems. The central motif of her journey, she explains, has been peers giving her a shot, instead of established gatekeepers. So the old guard wasn’t helpful? “Not the gatekeepers”, she emphasizes, adding amusedly: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”

Rising Success

Individuals who were skeptical about Sennott previously will certainly be kicking themselves now. In what she calls a “incredibly circular” development, she seems to have manifested the perfect project. A few years back she posted content titled about Los Angeles online, in which she mocked film promos (“Everyone’s hooked on something”). Now, she’s executive producer (with Emma Barrie) of a series about Angelenos managing the perks of digital stardom (such as celebrating at a famous actor’s house) with drawbacks (your friend being suspected of being a substance-abusing stealer, and possibly becoming a risky pariah). It would be easy to create a program about internet celebrity that was extremely idealized—or, more problematic, one that belittled at its subjects. The series steers clear of each, making for a representation of privileged twentysomething living that’s candid about the grot and the glamour.

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 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