🔗 Share this article Rachel Sennott discussing the side-splitting comedy about the grotty appeal of Gen Z existence The performer appears on the digital interview and immediately starts an apology. “I can’t believe I’m late!” she exclaims, seeming truly regretful. She is only slightly behind, she needs to explain. “I tend to talk too much during calls. I had two calls before this, and I’m like, I’ve gotta stop talking!” Luckily, for a writer, this is exactly what you want to experience. Moreover, it’s quite predictable. Those who have seen the boldly openly gay and brash film Bottoms—which she collaborated on with her creative partner and starred in with close companion the talented actress—would already know that Sennott has a lot to share, be it on roles, intimacy, or the merits of creating a high-school brawl society. Plus, after watching the new eight-part program titled I Love LA, viewers realize that the star carries additional thoughts on the darker side of modern youth (As a millennial, she serves as an honorary member to younger audiences, a tale-end millennial adept for straddling millennials and Gen Z). Guiding Lights and Artistic Direction Parallels to Lena Dunham’s Girls can’t be avoided and Sennott readily acknowledges an admirer, naming it in addition to Sex and the City, Insecure and Donald Glover’s series as influences for her series, which follows the travails of online personality played by Odessa A’Zion and ally and aspiring agent Maia. Notably, the biggest influence on concept went to the popular sitcom, that show about a rising celebrity succeeding in a gritty LA scene (choice quote: “nobody’s happy in this town except for the losers”). She discovered it amid lockdown, became “hooked”, and chose to add a fresh perspective on it “for the girls and the gays”. “I wanted to make a show where the internet, not Hollywood, was the industry, because my career started online,” she explains. The idea for this project emerged—in part—from firsthand, at first difficult, transition to Los Angeles and from the cosmic event, a frequently discussed occurrence for enthusiasts. It was an era that involved her grasp significant insights, work-wise 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. It was almost like these biblical tests …” Humble Origins Brought up in Connecticut, the star started writing and performing comedy while pursuing performance at a prestigious arts school. “Despite trying every conventional route, I couldn’t find my footing,” 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. “It left me questioning my purpose and place.” Sennott decided to act independently, performing at live shows with Edebiri and posting uproarious (and decidedly) unconventional comedy videos on the internet. One, titled Baby Cult, centered on characters fetishistically drawn to motherhood; another imagined working at the preppy clothing store Hollister as akin to being trapped in a scary movie. In a neat twist of fate, she met Seligman through the university’s film scene and eventually featuring in her directorial debut, Shiva Baby, an anxious film set at a religious event with hints of Uncut Gems. The big theme of her journey, she says, has been peers offering opportunities, rather than traditional networks. Does that mean bypassing the usual powers? “Definitely not them”, she repeats, continuing amusedly: “They don’t want us to win.” Manifesting Dreams Individuals who had doubts regarding Sennott earlier will likely be feeling foolish now. Through she describes as a “wild, full-circle” story, she appears to created the perfect project. In 2019 she posted a video named on LA life on social media, in which she lampooned film promos (“Everyone’s hooked on something”). Now, she’s the co-showrunner (with her partner) of a comedy about Angelenos managing the perks of internet fame (such as partying at a famous actor’s house) with drawbacks (your friend being labeled as being a drug-addled stealer, and potentially becoming a risky pariah). It would be simple to make a series about online fame that was horribly idealized—or, more problematic, one that belittled at those depicted. The series steers clear of each, resulting in a depiction of advantaged millennial existence that’s honest about the chaos and the appeal. Empathetic Approach “Numerous series present younger generations and digital culture in a derogatory manner,” 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