The performer joins the online meeting and right away launches into an excuse. “I can’t believe I’m late!” she says, seeming genuinely apologetic. Despite being only a couple of minutes delayed, she feels compelled to clarify. “My phone conversations always run long.” “Previous discussions went over, and I realized I talk too much!” Luckily, during an interview, this is exactly what is ideal to experience. Besides, it’s pretty predictable. Those who know her boldly queer and unapologetically crass project titled Bottoms—which she penned with Emma Seligman and featured in with her friend The Bear’s standout—will already know that she possesses a lot to share, whether on gender, relationships, or the appeal of forming a youth brawl society. Plus, once you finish the new multi-episode HBO series I Love LA, it is clear that the star carries further perspectives about the struggles of young adulthood (Now in her thirties, she represents a relatable figure for this generation, a tale-end millennial skilled for connecting different age groups).
Influences and Storytelling Approach
Parallels to the iconic series Girls naturally arise and the actress is a fan, referencing it in addition to Sex and the City, Issa Rae’s show and Donald Glover’s series as influences for the project, which follows the travails of an influencer played by Odessa A’Zion and ally who is also aspiring agent portrayed by Sennott. Notably, the biggest spot on the moodboard belonged to the HBO series, that HBO sitcom focusing on an emerging celebrity making his way in an often-seedy LA scene (notable statement: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). She began viewing it during the pandemic, became “captivated”, and chose to put her own twist on it “targeting women and LGBTQ+ viewers”.
“My aim was to focus on digital fame over traditional entertainment, as my own beginnings were on the web,” she explains. The inspiration for this project emerged—in part—from personal, initially difficult, move to Los Angeles and from her astrological phase, a frequently discussed event for followers. That period marked a phase that involved her learn major life lessons, work-wise and personally. “My twenties began with constant public emotional outbursts and disorganization,” she recalls. “Settling in LA during my mid-twenties brought calm, but soon everything unraveled.” “It resembled a series of extreme challenges…”
Starting Out
Growing up in Connecticut, Sennott began developing and showcasing comedy while enrolled in performance at NYU’s Tisch. “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. “It left me questioning my purpose and place.”
Sennott decided to act independently, performing at open mics with Edebiri and posting uproarious (and very) weird online content digitally. One, titled Baby Cult, centered on characters obsessively fixated on having babies; another envisioned working at a trendy retail outlet as similar to being stuck in a scary movie. By chance, she encountered Seligman through campus film circles and ended up featuring in her first film, titled Shiva Baby, a stressful dramedy set at a religious event with echoes of the Safdie brothers’ movie. A recurring idea of her journey, she notes, has been people her own age giving her a shot, rather than established gatekeepers. Does that mean bypassing the usual powers? “Not the gatekeepers”, she emphasizes, continuing with a laugh: “They don’t want us to win.”
Manifesting Dreams
Anyone who questioned about her then will certainly be feeling foolish currently. Through she labels a “wild, full-circle” turn of events, she seems to have manifested the perfect project. In 2019 she shared content called about Los Angeles online, in which she parodied Hollywood trailers (“Substance abuse is rampant here”). Now, she’s the co-showrunner (with her partner) of a comedy about LA residents juggling advantages of online celebrity (such as socializing at a celebrity’s house) with drawbacks (your client being suspected of being a drug-addled stealer, and potentially becoming a unreliable pariah). Some could simple to create a series about digital influence that was horribly idealized—or, more problematic, one that mocked at those depicted. This show does neither, making for a depiction of advantaged young adult existence that’s honest about the grot and the appeal.
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
