The star joins the video call and at once begins an excuse. “Oh my God – I’m sorry!” she says, sounding truly remorseful. Although she's only a bit delayed, she feels compelled to explain. “My phone conversations always run long.” I had two calls before this, and I’m like, I’ve gotta stop talking!” Thankfully, for a writer, this is precisely what you want to hear. Additionally, it’s quite expected. Viewers who know the unapologetically LGBTQ+ and brash film titled Bottoms—that Sennott penned with her creative partner and featured in with her friend the talented actress—will already know that Sennott has much to say, be it on roles, intimacy, or the pros of forming a teen brawl society. Plus, once you finish her new eight-part HBO series I Love LA, it becomes obvious that she carries additional insights regarding the darker side of modern youth (Now in her thirties, Sennott is a bridge of the gang, on the cusp with a knack for bridging millennials and Gen Z).
Inspirations and Artistic Direction
Parallels to Lena Dunham’s groundbreaking show are inevitable and the actress admits to being a fan, citing it in addition to the HBO hit, the acclaimed comedy and Donald Glover’s series as inspirations for her series, which tracks the travails of a social media star Tallulah and her friend and fledgling representative Sennott’s character. Notably, the most significant influence on the moodboard belonged to Entourage, that HBO sitcom focusing on an up-and-coming Hollywood star succeeding in a gritty Hollywood (notable statement: “nobody’s happy in this town except for the losers”). She began viewing it during the pandemic, became “obsessed”, and decided to put her own twist on it “targeting women and LGBTQ+ viewers”.
“I sought to highlight online platforms as the new industry, since my professional journey launched there,” she explains. The inspiration for this project came—to some extent—from firsthand, originally fractious, move to LA and from the astrological phase, a much-talked-about occurrence for followers. This represented a phase that involved her grasp some big truths, in her career and in private life. “In my early 20s I was so messy, crying in public everywhere, all the time,” she admits. “Settling in LA during my mid-twenties brought calm, but soon everything unraveled.” It was almost like these biblical tests …”
Humble Origins
Brought up in the East Coast, Sennott started developing and showcasing stand-up while enrolled in theatre at New York University (NYU) Tisch School of the Arts. “I followed traditional paths to get on stage, but nothing clicked,” she says. “Every campus humor group turned me down after tryouts.” “None of the university plays cast me either.” “It left me questioning my purpose and place.”
Sennott seized control, performing at amateur nights with her friend and posting hysterical (and distinctly) unconventional comedy videos digitally. A particular video, titled Baby Cult, followed characters fetishistically obsessed with motherhood; a different one imagined working at a trendy retail outlet as akin to being stuck in a horror film. Interestingly, she encountered Seligman through NYU’s movie community and eventually featuring in her directorial debut, Shiva Baby, a tense film set at a Jewish wake with shades of the intense thriller. A recurring idea of her path, she explains, has been contemporaries supporting her, rather than established gatekeepers. Does that mean bypassing the usual powers? “Definitely not them”, she confirms, adding amusedly: “They prefer we don’t succeed.”
Rising Success
Anyone who had doubts about her earlier will surely be kicking themselves now. Through she calls a “wild, full-circle” story, she has achieved the perfect project. In 2019 she uploaded a clip titled on LA life online, in which she mocked film promos (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Years later, she’s the co-showrunner (with her partner) of a comedy about city dwellers juggling benefits of online celebrity (such as celebrating at a celebrity’s house) with downsides (your associate being suspected of being a intoxicated criminal, and perhaps becoming a “brand unsafe” persona non grata). One might easy to produce a show about internet celebrity that was extremely glamorous—or, more problematic, one that belittled at the characters. The series does neither, creating a portrait of privileged twentysomething living that’s frank about the grot and the shine.
Nuanced Portrayal
“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
