Rachel Sennott exploring the side-splitting comedy portraying that grotty appeal of today's youth life
The performer appears on the video call and at once starts an explanation. “Apologies for the delay!” she says, sounding genuinely regretful. Although she's only slightly delayed, she needs to explain. “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!” Thankfully, in this context, this is exactly what you want to encounter. Additionally, it’s quite expected. Anyone who have seen the boldly LGBTQ+ and brash movie titled Bottoms—that she collaborated on with Emma Seligman and featured in together with close companion The Bear’s standout—will understand that Sennott possesses much to say, whether on roles, relationships, or the appeal of forming a youth fight club. And, by the end the latest eight-part show I Love LA, it is clear that the star holds further thoughts on the struggles of modern youth (Now in her thirties, she represents an honorary member for this generation, a tale-end millennial skilled for bridging different age groups).
Inspirations and Artistic Direction
Likenesses to Lena Dunham’s Girls naturally arise and Sennott is an admirer, citing the show alongside Sex and the City, the acclaimed comedy and Donald Glover’s series as inspirations for her series, which follows the journey of an influencer Tallulah and close companion and fledgling talent manager Maia. Notably, the largest influence on concept went to the popular sitcom, the program depicting a rising A-list actor succeeding in a gritty entertainment industry (notable statement: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). Sennott discovered it amid COVID-19, became “obsessed”, and chose to put her own twist on it “for the girls and the gays”.
“I sought to highlight online platforms as the new industry, since my professional journey launched there,” she notes. The idea for I Love LA emerged—partly—from personal, initially fractious, relocation to LA and from the astrological phase, a frequently discussed phenomenon for enthusiasts. It was a phase that saw her learn significant truths, professionally and in private life. “My twenties began with constant public emotional outbursts and disorganization,” 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
Raised in Connecticut, Sennott started creating and acting stand-up while pursuing acting at NYU’s Tisch. “I followed traditional paths to get on stage, but nothing clicked,” she says. “Auditions for university comedy troupes led to universal rejection. “None of the university plays cast me either.” And I just felt like, what am I doing here?”
She seized control, taking the stage at open mics with her friend and sharing uproarious (and distinctly) weird comedy videos on the internet. One, Baby Cult, followed a group of women intensely drawn to motherhood; another envisioned working at the brand Hollister as similar to being stuck in a thriller. In a neat twist of fate, she met Seligman through the university’s film scene and ended up starring in her initial project, titled Shiva Baby, a stressful comedy set at a Jewish wake with hints of the Safdie brothers’ movie. A recurring idea of her career, she says, has been contemporaries offering opportunities, as opposed to established gatekeepers. So, not the gatekeepers, then? “Definitely not them”, she confirms, continuing humorously: “They don’t want us to win.”
Career Breakthrough
Anyone who had doubts about her previously will likely be kicking themselves currently. Through she describes as a “astonishingly complete” development, she seems to have manifested an ideal role. In 2019 she uploaded a clip named “it’s LA” on social media, in which she parodied film promos (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Now, she’s a lead creator (with the co-writer) of a comedy about city dwellers balancing the perks of digital stardom (such as celebrating at Elijah Wood’s house) with its pitfalls (your associate being suspected of being a intoxicated stealer, and possibly becoming a risky pariah). One might easy to produce a series about digital influence that was overly idealized—or, worse, one that punched down at those depicted. This show does neither, creating a representation of privileged twentysomething living that’s frank about the grot and the shine.
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 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