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Rachel Sennott appears on the online meeting and right away begins an excuse. “I can’t believe I’m late!” she says, seeming genuinely regretful. Although she's only a bit delayed, she needs to clarify. “My phone conversations always run long.” I had two calls before this, and I’m like, I’ve gotta stop talking!” Fortunately, for a writer, this is precisely what is ideal to hear. Additionally, it’s quite expected. Anyone who know the unapologetically queer and brash film Bottoms—that she collaborated on with the director and appeared in with close companion The Bear’s standout—can understand that she holds a lot to say, be it about roles, relationships, or the merits of forming a youth combat group. And, after watching the recent seasonal HBO series titled I Love LA, it is clear that the star has even more perspectives on the struggles of Gen Z life (At 30, she is a bridge to younger audiences, a tale-end millennial skilled for connecting both generations).

Influences and Storytelling Approach

The comparisons to Lena Dunham’s groundbreaking show can’t be avoided and the actress admits to being enthusiastic, naming the show alongside Sex and the City, Insecure and Donald Glover’s series as inspirations for I Love LA, which details the struggles of online personality played by Odessa A’Zion and ally and new representative portrayed by Sennott. Perhaps, the largest influence on the moodboard belonged to the HBO series, the HBO sitcom focusing on an up-and-coming Hollywood star succeeding in an often-seedy LA scene (choice quote: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). She discovered it amid lockdown, became “obsessed”, and resolved to put her own twist 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 inspiration for the series emerged—to some extent—from personal, originally fractious, relocation to Tinseltown and from the astrological phase, a popular occurrence for followers. This represented a time that saw her learn some big life lessons, work-wise and personally. “During my younger years, I was chaotic, often breaking down in public,” 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 …”

Humble Origins

Brought up in New England, Sennott started writing and performing comedy while pursuing acting at NYU’s Tisch. “Despite trying every conventional route, I couldn’t find my footing,” she says. “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.”

She decided to act independently, performing at open mics with Edebiri and posting hilarious (and decidedly) weird online content online. A particular video, titled Baby Cult, depicted several females intensely fixated on motherhood; a different one portrayed being employed at the preppy clothing store Hollister as like being trapped in a scary movie. In a neat twist of fate, she met Emma through campus film circles and ended up featuring in her directorial debut, Shiva Baby, an anxious comedy set at a religious event with hints of the intense thriller. The central motif of her journey, she notes, has been peers supporting her, rather than established gatekeepers. So the old guard wasn’t helpful? “They were not involved”, she repeats, stating amusedly: “They don’t want us to win.”

Rising Success

Those who were skeptical about her previously will surely be regretting it now. Through she calls a “incredibly circular” development, she seems to have created her dream vehicle. A few years back she uploaded a clip titled about Los Angeles on the internet, in which she mocked Hollywood trailers (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Now, she’s executive producer (with the co-writer) of a series about Angelenos juggling benefits of internet fame (such as partying at Elijah Wood’s house) with its pitfalls (your client being labeled as being a drug-addled thief, and perhaps becoming a risky persona non grata). One might tempting to make a show about online fame that was horribly glamorous—or, worse, one that punched down at the characters. I Love LA avoids both, creating a depiction of advantaged young adult living that’s candid about the grot and the shine.

Empathetic Approach

“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