The performer appears on the video call and at once launches into an explanation. “Apologies for the delay!” she states, appearing genuinely regretful. Although she's only a couple of minutes delayed, she needs to clarify. “I have such a problem, because I’m a yapper on the phone. “Previous discussions went over, and I realized I talk too much!” Luckily, during an interview, that’s just what is ideal to hear. Moreover, it’s pretty unsurprising. Viewers familiar with the fearlessly LGBTQ+ and outspoken film Bottoms—that Sennott co-wrote with her creative partner and starred in alongside her friend Ayo Edebiri—would already know that she possesses much to share, be it about gender, relationships, or the merits of creating a youth combat group. And, by the end her latest seasonal HBO series titled I Love LA, viewers realize that she has further thoughts regarding the struggles of young adulthood (Now in her thirties, Sennott is an honorary member of the gang, a tale-end millennial adept for straddling millennials and Gen Z).
Guiding Lights and Storytelling Approach
The comparisons to the iconic series Girls can’t be avoided and the actress admits to being an admirer, referencing it together with the classic series, the acclaimed comedy and Atlanta as inspirations for I Love LA, which details the journey of an influencer played by Odessa A’Zion and ally and aspiring representative Maia. Notably, the largest presence on the moodboard went to Entourage, that program about a rising Hollywood star navigating in a gritty entertainment industry (choice quote: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). Sennott started watching it amid the pandemic, became “obsessed”, and resolved to put her own twist on it “with female and queer audiences in mind”.
“I sought to highlight online platforms as the new industry, since my professional journey launched there,” she says. The concept for I Love LA originated—partly—from firsthand, at first difficult, move to Los Angeles and from the astrological phase, a frequently discussed event for followers. That period marked a time that included her learn major truths, work-wise and individually. “During my younger years, I was chaotic, often breaking down in public,” she says. “Settling in LA during my mid-twenties brought calm, but soon everything unraveled.” “The struggles felt almost mythic in scale…”
Early Beginnings
Growing up in New England, Sennott commenced writing and performing comedy while enrolled in performance at NYU’s Tisch. “Despite trying every conventional route, I couldn’t find my footing,” she states. “I tried out for all the NYU comedy groups, and got rejected from all of them. “None of the university plays cast me either.” And I just felt like, what am I doing here?”
She took matters into her own hands, taking the stage at open mics with Ayo and uploading hysterical (and distinctly) weird comedy videos digitally. One, Baby Cult, depicted several females obsessively drawn to motherhood; another portrayed being employed at the preppy clothing store Hollister as akin to being trapped in a horror film. In a neat twist of fate, she encountered Seligman through the university’s film scene and ended up starring in her directorial debut, Shiva Baby, a tense comedy set at a Jewish wake with echoes of the Safdie brothers’ movie. A recurring idea of her path, she explains, has been people her own age offering opportunities, instead of established gatekeepers. Does that mean bypassing the usual powers? “Not the gatekeepers”, she repeats, continuing with a laugh: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”
Manifesting Dreams
Anyone who questioned regarding Sennott then will surely be feeling foolish now. Through she calls a “wild, full-circle” development, she appears to achieved an ideal role. Previously she posted a video titled on LA life online, in which she mocked movie previews (“Substance abuse is rampant here”). Years later, she’s executive producer (with Emma Barrie) of a show about city dwellers managing benefits of internet fame (such as celebrating at a famous actor’s house) with drawbacks (your client being labeled as being a drug-addled criminal, and possibly becoming a “brand unsafe” outcast). One might simple to produce a program about internet celebrity that was extremely aspirational—or, worse, one that belittled at its subjects. I Love LA does neither, resulting in a portrait of advantaged millennial life that’s frank about the mess and the shine.
Empathetic Approach
“Numerous series present younger generations and digital culture in a derogatory manner,” 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
