The performer joins the online meeting and immediately begins an apology. “Oh my God – I’m sorry!” she exclaims, seeming truly apologetic. Despite being only a bit behind, she wants to explain. “My phone conversations always run long.” I had two calls before this, and I’m like, I’ve gotta stop talking!” Fortunately, for a writer, this is just what one hopes to hear. Additionally, it’s quite expected. Viewers who know the boldly queer and outspoken film titled Bottoms—that Sennott collaborated on with Emma Seligman and starred in together with close companion Ayo Edebiri—will be aware that she holds plenty to discuss, whether about identity, relationships, or the appeal of forming a youth combat group. Furthermore, after watching her new eight-part program titled I Love LA, viewers realize that the star carries even more thoughts about the struggles of Gen Z life (As a millennial, Sennott represents a bridge to younger audiences, on the cusp with a knack for straddling millennials and Gen Z).
Influences and Artistic Direction
Parallels to Lena Dunham’s Girls are inevitable and Sennott is a fan, referencing the show in addition to Sex and the City, Insecure and Atlanta as inspirations for the project, which follows the journey of a social media star Tallulah and her friend and new talent manager Sennott’s character. Perhaps, the largest presence on the moodboard belonged to the HBO series, the show depicting a rising celebrity making his way in an often-seedy Hollywood (notable statement: “nobody’s happy in this town except for the losers”). Sennott discovered it during lockdown, became “hooked”, and chose to put her own twist on it “targeting women and LGBTQ+ viewers”.
“My aim was to focus on digital fame over traditional entertainment, as my own beginnings were on the web,” she notes. The concept for the series emerged—partly—from firsthand, initially difficult, move to Tinseltown and from her cosmic event, a frequently discussed event for enthusiasts. That period marked a phase that involved her learn some big life lessons, in her career and personally. “My twenties began with constant public emotional outbursts and disorganization,” she recalls. “After relocating to Los Angeles in my mid-twenties, I found stability, only for things to crumble. “The struggles felt almost mythic in scale…”
Humble Origins
Raised in Connecticut, the star commenced creating and acting comedy while pursuing performance at a prestigious arts school. “I followed traditional paths to get on stage, but nothing clicked,” she states. “Auditions for university comedy troupes led to universal rejection. “None of the university plays cast me either.” “I wondered why I was even there at all.”
Sennott seized control, appearing at live shows with Ayo and sharing hilarious (and very) bizarre skits on the internet. One, titled Baby Cult, followed a group of women obsessively fixated on having babies; another imagined working at the brand Hollister as similar to being trapped in a thriller. By chance, she connected with Seligman through the university’s film scene and ended up starring in her first film, titled Shiva Baby, a stressful dramedy set at a religious event with hints of the intense thriller. A recurring idea of her path, she notes, has been people her own age supporting her, as opposed to traditional networks. So the old guard wasn’t helpful? “They were not involved”, she confirms, adding humorously: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”
Manifesting Dreams
Anyone who questioned about Sennott then will likely be kicking themselves now. Through she labels a “astonishingly complete” turn of events, she has achieved the perfect project. Previously she uploaded a clip titled about Los Angeles online, in which she mocked movie previews (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Six years on, she’s the co-showrunner (with the co-writer) of a series about Angelenos managing benefits of digital stardom (such as celebrating at a celebrity’s house) with downsides (your friend being suspected of being a substance-abusing thief, and possibly becoming a unreliable persona non grata). Some could simple to produce a program about internet celebrity that was extremely aspirational—or, even less favorable, one that mocked at those depicted. I Love LA does neither, making for a depiction of advantaged twentysomething living that’s frank about the grot and the appeal.
Balanced Perspective
“There have been a lot of shows that depict young people and their relationship to the internet in this very condescending, hateful way,” 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
