The star joins the online meeting and immediately starts an explanation. “Apologies for the delay!” she says, appearing really regretful. Despite being only a bit delayed, she feels compelled to clarify. “I have such a problem, because I’m a yapper on the phone. “Earlier calls made me late—I just can’t stop chatting!” Thankfully, during an interview, that’s just what you want to experience. Moreover, it’s fairly predictable. Viewers who have seen her unapologetically queer and outspoken film Bottoms—that Sennott co-wrote with Emma Seligman and appeared in alongside close companion the talented actress—will already know that she holds much to discuss, be it on gender, sex, or the pros of starting a youth combat group. And, by the end the latest eight-part show titled I Love LA, it is clear that the star holds additional perspectives on the darker side of modern youth (Now in her thirties, she serves as an honorary member of the gang, straddling eras adept for connecting both generations).
The comparisons to Lena Dunham’s groundbreaking show naturally arise and Sennott admits to being enthusiastic, citing the show together with Sex and the City, the acclaimed comedy and Atlanta as guides for her series, which tracks the struggles of an influencer Tallulah and her friend and fledgling talent manager Sennott’s character. Perhaps, the biggest spot on creative vision was reserved for the HBO series, the HBO sitcom about an emerging Hollywood star making his way in an often-seedy entertainment industry (memorable line: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). She discovered it during COVID-19, became “obsessed”, and resolved to add a fresh perspective 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 emerged—partly—from personal, at first fractious, transition to LA and from the saturn return, a popular phenomenon for enthusiasts. It was a time that involved her grasp some big truths, work-wise 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 resembled a series of extreme challenges…”
Brought up in New England, the star commenced writing and performing comedy while pursuing theatre at a prestigious arts school. “Despite trying every conventional route, I couldn’t find my footing,” she explains. “Every campus humor group turned me down after tryouts.” “Theatre productions at school also didn’t accept me. “I wondered why I was even there at all.”
Sennott took matters into her own hands, taking the stage at open mics with her friend and sharing uproarious (and distinctly) unconventional comedy videos on the internet. A particular video, Baby Cult, centered on a group of women intensely fixated on having babies; another envisioned being employed at the brand Hollister as akin to being trapped in a scary movie. Interestingly, she connected with Emma through NYU’s movie community and ended up starring in her first film, Shiva Baby, an anxious comedy set at a religious event with shades of the Safdie brothers’ movie. A recurring idea of her journey, she notes, has been people her own age offering opportunities, as opposed to traditional networks. So, not the gatekeepers, then? “They were not involved”, she repeats, stating humorously: “They prefer we don’t succeed.”
Individuals who had doubts regarding Sennott earlier will certainly be feeling foolish today. In what she labels a “incredibly circular” turn of events, she appears to achieved her dream vehicle. In 2019 she uploaded a video called “it’s LA” on social media, in which she parodied movie previews (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Six years on, she’s a lead creator (with her partner) of a comedy about LA residents juggling the perks of digital stardom (such as celebrating at Elijah Wood’s house) with downsides (your associate being labeled as being a substance-abusing criminal, and possibly becoming a risky outcast). One might easy to create a program about internet celebrity that was extremely glamorous—or, even less favorable, one that belittled at the characters. I Love LA steers clear of each, resulting in a representation of affluent twentysomething living that’s candid about the grot and the shine.
“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
A tech analyst and business strategist with over a decade of experience in global markets, specializing in digital transformation and innovation.
