The performer enters the video call and right away starts an excuse. “Oh my God – I’m sorry!” she states, appearing really apologetic. She is only a couple of minutes behind, she wants to explain. “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 exactly what one hopes to encounter. Besides, it’s quite predictable. Anyone who know her boldly openly gay and outspoken movie Bottoms—that Sennott collaborated on with the director and featured in alongside collaborator The Bear’s standout—can understand that Sennott holds much to say, whether about identity, intimacy, or the appeal of starting a high-school fight club. Furthermore, once you finish the recent eight-part HBO series titled I Love LA, it is clear that the star has even more thoughts about the darker side of Gen Z life (As a millennial, she represents a bridge for this generation, straddling eras adept for bridging both generations).
Inspirations and Creative Vision
Parallels to Lena Dunham’s Girls naturally arise and the actress readily acknowledges a fan, citing the show in addition to the classic series, the acclaimed comedy and Donald Glover’s series as guides for I Love LA, which details the journey of a social media star played by Odessa A’Zion and ally and new agent portrayed by Sennott. Perhaps, the largest influence on the moodboard went to Entourage, the HBO sitcom focusing on a rising Hollywood star succeeding in a gritty LA scene (notable statement: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). Sennott started watching it during lockdown, became “captivated”, and chose to put her own twist 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 says. The idea for I Love LA originated—partly—from personal, originally rocky, transition to Los Angeles and from the cosmic event, a popular occurrence for enthusiasts. This represented an era that saw her learn major truths, professionally and in private life. “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.” It was almost like these biblical tests …”
Early Beginnings
Brought up in Connecticut, the star started developing and showcasing stand-up while studying theatre 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.” “It left me questioning my purpose and place.”
She decided to act independently, appearing at open mics with Ayo and posting hilarious (and decidedly) weird online content on the internet. One, Baby Cult, followed several females obsessively drawn to having babies; a different one portrayed working at the brand Hollister as akin to being trapped in a horror film. By chance, she connected with Emma through campus film circles and ultimately featuring in her first film, Shiva Baby, a stressful dramedy set at a Jewish wake with hints of Uncut Gems. A recurring idea of her path, she notes, has been contemporaries giving her a shot, rather than established gatekeepers. So the old guard wasn’t helpful? “They were not involved”, she repeats, adding humorously: “They prefer we don’t succeed.”
Rising Success
Anyone who questioned regarding her then will likely be feeling foolish currently. In what she calls a “incredibly circular” development, she appears to achieved the perfect project. A few years back she shared a video titled about Los Angeles online, in which she parodied Hollywood trailers (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Six years on, she’s executive producer (with Emma Barrie) of a show about LA residents managing advantages of internet fame (such as partying at Elijah Wood’s house) with downsides (your friend being labeled as being a drug-addled criminal, and perhaps becoming a risky outcast). One might easy to produce a show about digital influence that was overly aspirational—or, worse, one that belittled at those depicted. The series does neither, making for a representation of affluent millennial life that’s frank about the mess 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 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
