The star joins the online meeting and right away begins an explanation. “Apologies for the delay!” she states, sounding really regretful. Despite being only a couple of minutes delayed, she wants to explain. “I tend to talk too much during calls. I had two calls before this, and I’m like, I’ve gotta stop talking!” Thankfully, during an interview, this is just what one hopes to hear. Moreover, it’s pretty unsurprising. Anyone who know her boldly openly gay and unapologetically crass film Bottoms—that she collaborated on with Emma Seligman and appeared in together with collaborator Ayo Edebiri—will be aware that Sennott has much to say, be it on roles, sex, or the merits of creating a teen brawl society. And, after watching her latest eight-part HBO series I Love LA, it is clear that the star has further thoughts regarding the challenges of modern youth (Now in her thirties, she is a bridge of the gang, a tale-end millennial with a knack for bridging millennials and Gen Z).
Influences and Storytelling Approach
Parallels to Lena Dunham’s groundbreaking show can’t be avoided and the actress admits to being a fan, citing the show together with Sex and the City, the acclaimed comedy and the innovative program as inspirations for the project, which tracks the journey of an influencer Tallulah and ally who is also aspiring representative Maia. Perhaps, the most significant spot on concept went to the popular sitcom, the program focusing on a rising Hollywood star navigating in a corrupt Hollywood (choice quote: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). Sennott began viewing it throughout the pandemic, became “captivated”, and chose to add a fresh perspective on it “with female and queer audiences in mind”.
“I sought to highlight online platforms as the new industry, since my professional journey launched there,” she notes. The inspiration for the series emerged—in part—from her own, at first fractious, transition to LA and from the cosmic event, a popular event for astrology heads. That period marked a time that involved her grasp major truths, work-wise and individually. “In my early 20s I was so messy, crying in public everywhere, all the time,” she says. “After relocating to Los Angeles in my mid-twenties, I found stability, only for things to crumble. “It resembled a series of extreme challenges…”
Humble Origins
Brought up in New England, the star started writing and performing humor while studying performance at NYU’s Tisch. “I followed traditional paths to get on stage, but nothing clicked,” she states. “Auditions for university comedy troupes led to universal rejection. I tried out for all the NYU plays and didn’t make it into any of them. “It left me questioning my purpose and place.”
Sennott seized control, taking the stage at live shows with Ayo and posting hysterical (and very) weird online content digitally. One, titled Baby Cult, followed a group of women intensely drawn to pregnancy; another imagined working at a trendy retail outlet as akin to being caught in a thriller. In a neat twist of fate, she connected with Seligman through the university’s film scene and ultimately appearing in her initial project, titled Shiva Baby, an anxious film set at a religious event with hints of the Safdie brothers’ movie. The big theme of her path, she explains, has been people her own age offering opportunities, instead of traditional networks. So the old guard wasn’t helpful? “They were not involved”, she emphasizes, continuing with a laugh: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”
Career Breakthrough
Those who were skeptical about Sennott earlier will surely be regretting it today. In what she calls a “incredibly circular” development, she has created the perfect project. A few years back she uploaded content named “it’s LA” online, in which she parodied film promos (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Six years on, she’s a lead creator (with the co-writer) of a series about city dwellers managing benefits of online celebrity (such as socializing at a celebrity’s house) with drawbacks (your client being accused of being a drug-addled thief, and potentially becoming a unreliable persona non grata). It would be tempting to produce a program about digital influence that was overly glamorous—or, worse, one that punched down at those depicted. The series avoids both, resulting in a representation of privileged millennial living that’s frank about the mess and the appeal.
Balanced Perspective
“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
