The performer appears on the digital interview and at once begins an explanation. “I can’t believe I’m late!” she states, appearing genuinely remorseful. Although she's only a couple of minutes late, she wants to clarify. “I tend to talk too much during calls. I had two calls before this, and I’m like, I’ve gotta stop talking!” Fortunately, in this context, this is precisely what one hopes to hear. Moreover, it’s quite unsurprising. Viewers familiar with the fearlessly openly gay and brash project titled Bottoms—that Sennott co-wrote with Emma Seligman and starred in with collaborator Ayo Edebiri—can be aware that she holds a lot to say, ranging from about identity, intimacy, or the merits of starting a youth fight club. Plus, after watching the new seasonal program I Love LA, it is clear that she carries even more insights about the challenges of Gen Z life (At 30, she is an honorary member of the gang, a tale-end millennial adept for bridging millennials and Gen Z).
Inspirations and Artistic Direction
Parallels to Lena Dunham’s groundbreaking show can’t be avoided and the actress is enthusiastic, referencing it alongside the HBO hit, Issa Rae’s show and Donald Glover’s series as inspirations for her series, which tracks the travails of online personality played by Odessa A’Zion and her friend and new representative portrayed by Sennott. However, the biggest presence on the moodboard went to Entourage, the HBO sitcom depicting a rising celebrity succeeding in a corrupt entertainment industry (choice quote: “nobody’s happy in this town except for the losers”). Sennott discovered it amid lockdown, became “obsessed”, and decided 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 says. The inspiration for this project originated—partly—from her own, initially rocky, move to Los Angeles and from the saturn return, a frequently discussed event for enthusiasts. It was a time that saw her grasp significant life lessons, in her career and personally. “My twenties began with constant public emotional outbursts and disorganization,” 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…”
Starting Out
Growing up in New England, the star started creating and acting comedy while studying theatre at NYU’s Tisch. “I went through all the proper channels to try to perform, and they weren’t gelling,” she explains. “I tried out for all the NYU comedy groups, and got rejected from all of them. “Theatre productions at school also didn’t accept me. “I wondered why I was even there at all.”
Sennott took matters into her own hands, appearing at live shows with Ayo and uploading uproarious (and very) bizarre comedy videos digitally. A particular video, titled Baby Cult, followed a group of women intensely drawn to pregnancy; a different one imagined being employed at the preppy clothing store Hollister as like being trapped in a horror film. In a neat twist of fate, she connected with Emma through campus film circles and eventually featuring in her directorial debut, titled Shiva Baby, a tense comedy set at a funeral gathering with echoes of the Safdie brothers’ movie. The central motif of her path, she notes, has been people her own age giving her a shot, rather than established gatekeepers. So, not the gatekeepers, then? “They were not involved”, she repeats, continuing amusedly: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”
Rising Success
Anyone who had doubts about Sennott earlier will likely be regretting it currently. Through she calls a “incredibly circular” story, she has manifested the perfect project. In 2019 she uploaded content titled on LA life on social media, in which she parodied movie previews (“Substance abuse is rampant here”). Six years on, she’s a lead creator (with Emma Barrie) of a series about city dwellers managing benefits of digital stardom (such as partying at Elijah Wood’s house) with downsides (your client being suspected of being a drug-addled criminal, and potentially becoming a unreliable persona non grata). Some could simple to make a show about online fame that was extremely idealized—or, more problematic, one that mocked at its subjects. This show does neither, resulting in a representation of affluent young adult existence that’s honest about the chaos and the glamour.
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
