The performer joins the video call and immediately starts an excuse. “Apologies for the delay!” she exclaims, sounding really remorseful. She is only a couple of minutes behind, she wants to clarify. “I tend to talk too much during calls. “Earlier calls made me late—I just can’t stop chatting!” Thankfully, during an interview, that’s precisely what you want to hear. Besides, it’s quite expected. Those who know her unapologetically LGBTQ+ and brash film titled Bottoms—that she collaborated on with her creative partner and appeared in alongside close companion the talented actress—would understand that she possesses much to discuss, ranging from on identity, relationships, or the pros of forming a youth brawl society. Furthermore, by the end the new seasonal HBO series I Love LA, it becomes obvious that she carries further perspectives on the struggles of Gen Z life (Now in her thirties, she represents an honorary member for this generation, on the cusp skilled for bridging both generations).
Influences and Artistic Direction
Parallels to the iconic series Girls naturally arise and the actress admits to being an admirer, citing it in addition to Sex and the City, the acclaimed comedy and Donald Glover’s series as guides for her series, which details the struggles of an influencer played by Odessa A’Zion and her friend who is also new talent manager Maia. Notably, the biggest spot on creative vision was reserved for the HBO series, that HBO sitcom focusing on an emerging A-list actor making his way in a gritty LA scene (choice quote: “nobody’s happy in this town except for the losers”). She discovered it during the pandemic, became “obsessed”, and decided to put her own twist on it “targeting women and LGBTQ+ viewers”.
“I wanted to make a show where the internet, not Hollywood, was the industry, because my career started online,” she says. The inspiration for this project came—in part—from firsthand, initially difficult, relocation to Tinseltown and from her saturn return, a frequently discussed occurrence for astrology heads. It was an era that involved her learn major insights, professionally and individually. “In my early 20s I was so messy, crying in public everywhere, all the time,” 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
Growing up in the East Coast, Sennott started developing and showcasing humor while pursuing performance at New York University (NYU) Tisch School of the Arts. “I followed traditional paths to get on stage, but nothing clicked,” she states. “Auditions for university comedy troupes led to universal rejection. “Theatre productions at school also didn’t accept me. And I just felt like, what am I doing here?”
Sennott decided to act independently, appearing at amateur nights with Ayo and sharing hilarious (and decidedly) weird online content digitally. A particular video, Baby Cult, depicted characters fetishistically obsessed with motherhood; a different one imagined working at the preppy clothing store Hollister as akin to being stuck in a scary movie. In a neat twist of fate, she encountered Emma through NYU’s movie community and ultimately featuring in her directorial debut, titled Shiva Baby, an anxious film set at a religious event with hints of the intense thriller. A recurring idea of her journey, she says, has been peers giving her a shot, instead of established gatekeepers. Does that mean bypassing the usual powers? “They were not involved”, she confirms, continuing amusedly: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”
Career Breakthrough
Anyone who had doubts about her then will likely be regretting it now. In what she labels a “astonishingly complete” turn of events, she has created the perfect project. In 2019 she shared a video titled about Los Angeles online, in which she mocked Hollywood trailers (“Everyone’s hooked on something”). Years later, she’s the co-showrunner (with the co-writer) of a series about Angelenos balancing benefits of online celebrity (such as socializing at Elijah Wood’s house) with downsides (your client being labeled as being a substance-abusing thief, and potentially becoming a unreliable pariah). Some could tempting to create a program about online fame that was extremely glamorous—or, even less favorable, one that belittled at those depicted. I Love LA does neither, resulting in a depiction of affluent twentysomething living that’s candid about the grot and the shine.
Nuanced Portrayal
“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
