The star enters the video call and right away starts an explanation. “Apologies for the delay!” she states, seeming truly remorseful. She is only slightly delayed, she needs 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!” Luckily, in this context, this is just what is ideal to encounter. Additionally, it’s fairly predictable. Those who know the boldly queer and unapologetically crass project Bottoms—that Sennott collaborated on with her creative partner and appeared in alongside collaborator the talented actress—will be aware that she possesses much to discuss, ranging from about roles, relationships, or the pros of starting a high-school fight club. Furthermore, once you finish her latest eight-part show I Love LA, viewers realize that the star carries even more thoughts on the darker side of Gen Z life (Now in her thirties, Sennott represents an honorary member of the gang, a tale-end millennial with a knack for straddling different age groups).
Inspirations and Artistic Direction
Parallels to Lena Dunham’s Girls can’t be avoided and Sennott readily acknowledges a fan, naming it together with Sex and the City, the acclaimed comedy and the innovative program as inspirations for her series, which follows the travails of a social media star Tallulah and close companion and fledgling representative portrayed by Sennott. However, the largest influence on creative vision went to Entourage, the program focusing on an emerging A-list actor succeeding in a corrupt LA scene (choice quote: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). Sennott began viewing it during lockdown, became “captivated”, and decided to add a fresh perspective 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 notes. The inspiration for this project originated—in part—from her own, originally fractious, relocation to LA and from the saturn return, a frequently discussed phenomenon for enthusiasts. That period marked a time that included her learn significant insights, work-wise and personally. “In my early 20s I was so messy, crying in public everywhere, all the time,” she recalls. “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…”
Humble Origins
Raised in the East Coast, Sennott started developing and showcasing humor while pursuing theatre at NYU’s Tisch. “I went through all the proper channels to try to perform, and they weren’t gelling,” she explains. “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 seized control, taking the stage at live shows with Ayo and uploading uproarious (and decidedly) weird comedy videos on the internet. One, Baby Cult, followed characters fetishistically fixated on having babies; another imagined being employed at the preppy clothing store Hollister as like being caught in a scary movie. By chance, she met Emma through NYU’s movie community and ended up appearing in her initial project, titled Shiva Baby, a tense film set at a Jewish wake with hints of the intense thriller. The central motif of her career, she notes, has been peers offering opportunities, rather than established gatekeepers. So the old guard wasn’t helpful? “Definitely not them”, she repeats, stating amusedly: “They prefer we don’t succeed.”
Rising Success
Those who had doubts regarding her earlier will likely be regretting it today. In what she calls a “astonishingly complete” development, she appears to created an ideal role. Previously she posted a clip called on LA life on the internet, in which she lampooned film promos (“Everyone’s hooked on something”). Now, she’s a lead creator (with her partner) of a comedy about city dwellers juggling benefits of online celebrity (such as partying at Elijah Wood’s house) with its pitfalls (your client being suspected of being a drug-addled stealer, and perhaps becoming a risky outcast). One might simple to produce a series about internet celebrity that was overly aspirational—or, even less favorable, one that punched down at the characters. This show avoids both, creating a representation of privileged twentysomething existence that’s frank about the chaos and the shine.
Balanced Perspective
“Many programs portray youth and online life with disdain and mockery,” she comments. “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
