The performer enters the digital interview and at once begins an excuse. “Oh my God – I’m sorry!” she states, appearing genuinely apologetic. Despite being only slightly behind, she wants to clarify. “My phone conversations always run long.” “Previous discussions went over, and I realized I talk too much!” Fortunately, during an interview, this is just what you want to experience. Moreover, it’s fairly unsurprising. Those familiar with the fearlessly queer and brash project titled Bottoms—which she co-wrote with her creative partner and appeared in alongside her friend The Bear’s standout—will already know that Sennott has plenty to discuss, ranging from on gender, intimacy, or the appeal of creating a high-school brawl society. And, after watching the new eight-part program titled I Love LA, it is clear that the star holds even more perspectives regarding the struggles of young adulthood (As a millennial, she represents an honorary member of the gang, on the cusp skilled for bridging millennials and Gen Z).
Influences and Creative Vision
Likenesses to the iconic series Girls are inevitable and Sennott is enthusiastic, referencing it in addition to Sex and the City, Insecure and Donald Glover’s series as influences for her series, which tracks the struggles of online personality played by Odessa A’Zion and her friend who is also fledgling agent Maia. However, the most significant presence on creative vision belonged to Entourage, that program depicting an up-and-coming Hollywood star making his way in an often-seedy Hollywood (memorable line: “happiness eludes everyone but failures in this city”). Sennott began viewing it throughout lockdown, became “obsessed”, and chose to add a fresh perspective on it “with female and queer audiences in mind”.
“My aim was to focus on digital fame over traditional entertainment, as my own beginnings were on the web,” she notes. The idea for the series came—partly—from her own, at first fractious, transition to LA and from the astrological phase, a popular event for astrology heads. That period marked a time that saw her learn some big truths, in her career and personally. “In my early 20s I was so messy, crying in public everywhere, all the time,” she admits. “After relocating to Los Angeles in my mid-twenties, I found stability, only for things to crumble. It was almost like these biblical tests …”
Humble Origins
Growing up in New England, Sennott began developing and showcasing stand-up while enrolled in performance at a prestigious arts school. “I went through all the proper channels to try to perform, and they weren’t gelling,” she states. “Every campus humor group turned me down after tryouts.” “None of the university plays cast me either.” And I just felt like, what am I doing here?”
Sennott seized control, taking the stage at open mics with her friend and uploading hysterical (and decidedly) weird online content digitally. A particular video, titled Baby Cult, centered on characters intensely obsessed with pregnancy; another envisioned working at a trendy retail outlet as akin to being caught in a thriller. In a neat twist of fate, she encountered Emma through the university’s film scene and eventually appearing in her directorial debut, Shiva Baby, a stressful dramedy set at a religious event with shades of Uncut Gems. A recurring idea of her path, she says, has been contemporaries supporting her, as opposed to traditional networks. Does that mean bypassing the usual powers? “Not the gatekeepers”, she confirms, stating amusedly: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”
Career Breakthrough
Those who were skeptical regarding Sennott then will certainly be regretting it currently. As part of she describes as a “incredibly circular” story, she seems to have achieved the perfect project. A few years back she posted content titled “it’s LA” online, in which she lampooned film promos (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Six years on, she’s the co-showrunner (with the co-writer) of a comedy about city dwellers managing the perks of digital stardom (such as partying at Elijah Wood’s house) with its pitfalls (your friend being suspected of being a substance-abusing stealer, and potentially becoming a risky pariah). One might simple to produce a program about online fame that was horribly aspirational—or, worse, one that punched down at its subjects. This show avoids both, creating a representation of affluent young adult life that’s honest about the grot and the glamour.
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 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
