The actress and writer discussing her uproarious series portraying that grotty allure of Gen Z life
The star appears on the video call and at once launches into an explanation. “Oh my God – I’m sorry!” she exclaims, appearing truly apologetic. She is only slightly delayed, she feels compelled to clarify. “I tend to talk too much during calls. “Earlier calls made me late—I just can’t stop chatting!” Fortunately, for a writer, that’s precisely what one hopes to hear. Additionally, it’s quite predictable. Anyone familiar with the fearlessly queer and unapologetically crass movie Bottoms—which Sennott co-wrote with her creative partner and starred in alongside her friend the talented actress—can already know that Sennott possesses a lot to share, whether about roles, intimacy, or the pros of starting a youth combat group. Furthermore, after watching her new eight-part show I Love LA, it is clear that the star has even more thoughts on the darker side of young adulthood (Now in her thirties, she represents a bridge to younger audiences, on the cusp adept for straddling millennials and Gen Z).
Guiding Lights and Creative Vision
Parallels to the iconic series Girls are inevitable and Sennott admits to being enthusiastic, citing the show together with the classic series, the acclaimed comedy and the innovative program as influences for her series, which tracks the travails of an influencer played by Odessa A’Zion and her friend who is also new representative Maia. Perhaps, the largest presence on concept belonged to the popular sitcom, that program focusing on an emerging A-list actor succeeding in a corrupt entertainment industry (memorable line: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). She discovered it throughout lockdown, became “captivated”, and chose to put her own twist on it “for the girls and the gays”.
“I sought to highlight online platforms as the new industry, since my professional journey launched there,” she explains. The inspiration for the series emerged—to some extent—from firsthand, initially fractious, relocation to Los Angeles and from the astrological phase, a frequently discussed phenomenon for enthusiasts. It was a phase that saw her learn significant life lessons, work-wise and individually. “During my younger years, I was chaotic, often breaking down in public,” she recalls. “In my mid-20s, I moved to LA and got settled. And then I felt like everything started to just fall apart. “It resembled a series of extreme challenges…”
Humble Origins
Raised in New England, the star began developing and showcasing comedy while pursuing theatre at a prestigious arts school. “Despite trying every conventional route, I couldn’t find my footing,” she states. “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.”
She took matters into her own hands, appearing at amateur nights with her friend and posting hysterical (and very) bizarre online content online. A particular video, Baby Cult, depicted several females obsessively obsessed with pregnancy; another envisioned working at the preppy clothing store Hollister as akin to being trapped in a horror film. By chance, she connected with Seligman through the university’s film scene and ultimately appearing in her first film, titled Shiva Baby, a tense comedy set at a funeral gathering with echoes of the intense thriller. The central motif of her career, she says, has been people her own age supporting her, rather than traditional networks. So, not the gatekeepers, then? “Not the gatekeepers”, she confirms, stating humorously: “They prefer we don’t succeed.”
Career Breakthrough
Anyone who had doubts regarding her then will certainly be feeling foolish now. In what she calls a “astonishingly complete” turn of events, she appears to created the perfect project. Previously she uploaded content named “it’s LA” on social media, in which she parodied movie previews (“Everyone’s hooked on something”). Years later, she’s executive producer (with the co-writer) of a show about LA residents managing the perks of online celebrity (such as socializing at a famous actor’s house) with its pitfalls (your friend being suspected of being a substance-abusing criminal, and perhaps becoming a “brand unsafe” pariah). It would be easy to create a show about online fame that was overly idealized—or, worse, one that mocked at those depicted. I Love LA does neither, resulting in a portrait of privileged millennial existence that’s frank about the chaos and the appeal.
Balanced Perspective
“Many programs portray youth and online life with disdain and mockery,” 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