Rachel Sennott enters the online meeting and right away starts an apology. “Oh my God – I’m sorry!” she exclaims, seeming genuinely remorseful. Although she's only a couple of minutes delayed, she feels compelled to clarify. “I tend to talk too much during calls. I had two calls before this, and I’m like, I’ve gotta stop talking!” Fortunately, for a writer, that’s exactly what one hopes to hear. Additionally, it’s quite expected. Anyone familiar with her unapologetically openly gay and outspoken project Bottoms—that Sennott collaborated on with the director and starred in alongside collaborator the talented actress—would already know that she holds a lot to say, ranging from about roles, relationships, or the merits of creating a teen brawl society. Plus, after watching the latest seasonal program I Love LA, viewers realize that the star has even more insights on the struggles of Gen Z life (At 30, Sennott serves as a bridge of the gang, straddling eras with a knack for connecting different age groups).
Guiding Lights and Storytelling Approach
Likenesses to Lena Dunham’s Girls are inevitable and the actress is enthusiastic, referencing the show in addition to the classic series, Issa Rae’s show and Donald Glover’s series as inspirations for her series, which tracks the travails of online personality played by Odessa A’Zion and ally and fledgling representative Sennott’s character. However, the largest influence on creative vision went to the popular sitcom, that HBO sitcom depicting an up-and-coming celebrity succeeding in an often-seedy entertainment industry (memorable line: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). Sennott started watching it amid COVID-19, became “hooked”, and resolved 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 notes. The inspiration for this project originated—in part—from her own, initially fractious, relocation to LA and from her cosmic event, a popular occurrence for enthusiasts. It was a time that included her learn significant insights, 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. “The struggles felt almost mythic in scale…”
Early Beginnings
Growing up in the East Coast, the star began creating and acting stand-up while enrolled in acting at New York University (NYU) Tisch School of the Arts. “I followed traditional paths to get on stage, but nothing clicked,” she states. “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. “I wondered why I was even there at all.”
She took matters into her own hands, taking the stage at open mics with Edebiri and posting hilarious (and distinctly) weird comedy videos on the internet. A particular video, Baby Cult, depicted characters intensely drawn to having babies; another envisioned working at a trendy retail outlet as akin to being stuck in a horror film. In a neat twist of fate, she met Seligman through NYU’s movie community and eventually featuring in her first film, titled Shiva Baby, an anxious dramedy set at a religious event with hints of Uncut Gems. The central motif of her path, she says, has been people her own age offering opportunities, as opposed to the industry at large. Does that mean bypassing the usual powers? “Not the gatekeepers”, she emphasizes, adding humorously: “They prefer we don’t succeed.”
Rising Success
Those who were skeptical regarding her previously will certainly be kicking themselves now. As part of she calls a “wild, full-circle” turn of events, she appears to achieved the perfect project. Previously she shared a clip named on LA life on the internet, in which she mocked Hollywood trailers (“Everyone’s hooked on something”). Now, she’s the co-showrunner (with Emma Barrie) of a show about city dwellers managing advantages of online celebrity (such as partying at a famous actor’s house) with drawbacks (your associate being suspected of being a substance-abusing criminal, and possibly becoming a unreliable persona non grata). One might easy to create a show about online fame that was horribly aspirational—or, more problematic, one that mocked at its subjects. The series steers clear of each, making for a depiction of advantaged millennial existence that’s candid about the chaos and the appeal.
Empathetic Approach
“Numerous series present younger generations and digital culture in a derogatory manner,” 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
