Rachel Sennott on her side-splitting series about the grotty appeal of younger generation lifestyle
The star enters the digital interview and right away launches into an explanation. “Apologies for the delay!” she states, sounding truly apologetic. Despite being only a bit behind, she wants to clarify. “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, for a writer, that’s just what you want to hear. Moreover, it’s quite expected. Those who know her fearlessly LGBTQ+ and outspoken film Bottoms—which Sennott co-wrote with the director and featured in alongside close companion the talented actress—would be aware that Sennott possesses much to say, whether on identity, sex, or the merits of creating a teen combat group. Plus, once you finish her recent multi-episode show I Love LA, it is clear that she carries further insights regarding the challenges of Gen Z life (As a millennial, she serves as an honorary member to younger audiences, on the cusp skilled for straddling different age groups).
Influences and Storytelling Approach
Parallels to Lena Dunham’s groundbreaking show can’t be avoided and Sennott readily acknowledges a fan, referencing it together with the classic series, Issa Rae’s show and Atlanta as guides for I Love LA, which follows the struggles of a social media star Tallulah and her friend who is also aspiring agent Maia. However, the biggest spot on concept belonged to Entourage, that show depicting an up-and-coming celebrity navigating in a gritty LA scene (notable statement: “nobody’s happy in this town except for the losers”). Sennott started watching it amid the pandemic, became “obsessed”, and decided to put her own twist on it “with female and queer audiences in mind”.
“My aim was to focus on digital fame over traditional entertainment, as my own beginnings were on the web,” she says. The idea for this project came—partly—from personal, initially fractious, relocation to LA and from the saturn return, a popular phenomenon for astrology heads. This represented a phase that involved her understand major truths, professionally 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 …”
Starting Out
Growing up in Connecticut, the star commenced writing and performing stand-up while enrolled in acting at New York University (NYU) Tisch School of the Arts. “Despite trying every conventional route, I couldn’t find my footing,” she explains. “Auditions for university comedy troupes led to universal rejection. “Theatre productions at school also didn’t accept me. “I wondered why I was even there at all.”
She took matters into her own hands, appearing at live shows with her friend and posting uproarious (and decidedly) weird comedy videos on the internet. One, Baby Cult, centered on a group of women intensely fixated on motherhood; another envisioned being employed at a trendy retail outlet as like being stuck in a horror film. In a neat twist of fate, she met Emma through campus film circles and eventually starring in her first film, titled Shiva Baby, an anxious film set at a Jewish wake with shades of the Safdie brothers’ movie. The central motif of her career, she explains, has been people her own age giving her a shot, instead of the industry at large. So the old guard wasn’t helpful? “Not the gatekeepers”, she emphasizes, adding amusedly: “They prefer we don’t succeed.”
Career Breakthrough
Those who questioned about her then will certainly be regretting it currently. As part of she calls a “astonishingly complete” development, she seems to have created her dream vehicle. Previously she posted content named “it’s LA” on social media, in which she lampooned movie previews (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Six years on, she’s the co-showrunner (with her partner) of a show about LA residents managing advantages of internet fame (such as celebrating at Elijah Wood’s house) with drawbacks (your client being labeled as being a drug-addled thief, and possibly becoming a risky outcast). Some could tempting to produce a series about internet celebrity that was horribly idealized—or, worse, one that belittled at its subjects. The series steers clear of each, creating a depiction of advantaged millennial existence that’s candid about the mess and the appeal.
Nuanced Portrayal
“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