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The star joins the video call and immediately starts an excuse. “Apologies for the delay!” she says, appearing really apologetic. She is only a couple of minutes delayed, she wants to explain. “I tend to talk too much during calls. “Previous discussions went over, and I realized I talk too much!” Thankfully, in this context, this is just what is ideal to hear. Moreover, it’s fairly expected. Those who know her fearlessly openly gay and outspoken film Bottoms—that Sennott co-wrote with Emma Seligman and appeared in with collaborator the talented actress—can be aware that Sennott possesses much to discuss, be it on identity, intimacy, or the merits of forming a high-school combat group. Furthermore, once you finish her new multi-episode HBO series titled I Love LA, it is clear that the star has even more insights on the darker side of Gen Z life (At 30, she serves as a relatable figure for this generation, on the cusp adept for connecting both generations).

Guiding Lights and Artistic Direction

Likenesses to Lena Dunham’s groundbreaking show naturally arise and the actress readily acknowledges a fan, citing it alongside Sex and the City, Issa Rae’s show and Donald Glover’s series as influences for the project, which tracks the journey of online personality Tallulah and her friend and new agent portrayed by Sennott. Notably, the biggest presence on concept went to Entourage, the show about an up-and-coming celebrity making his way in a corrupt entertainment industry (notable statement: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). She discovered it throughout lockdown, became “hooked”, and resolved to create a new version on it “with female and queer audiences in mind”.

“I wanted to make a show where the internet, not Hollywood, was the industry, because my career started online,” she explains. The inspiration for the series came—in part—from personal, initially fractious, transition to Los Angeles and from the cosmic event, a frequently discussed event for enthusiasts. It was an era that saw her grasp major truths, work-wise and personally. “My twenties began with constant public emotional outbursts and disorganization,” she admits. “Settling in LA during my mid-twenties brought calm, but soon everything unraveled.” It was almost like these biblical tests …”

Starting Out

Brought up in the East Coast, Sennott started creating and acting stand-up while enrolled in performance at NYU’s Tisch. “I followed traditional paths to get on stage, but nothing clicked,” she says. “I tried out for all the NYU comedy groups, and got rejected from all of them. I tried out for all the NYU plays and didn’t make it into any of them. “I wondered why I was even there at all.”

She seized control, appearing at live shows with Edebiri and uploading uproarious (and distinctly) bizarre online content digitally. One, Baby Cult, depicted several females fetishistically drawn to having babies; a different one envisioned being employed at the brand Hollister as similar to being trapped in a thriller. In a neat twist of fate, she connected with Emma through campus film circles and eventually starring in her directorial debut, Shiva Baby, a stressful film set at a religious event with shades of Uncut Gems. A recurring idea of her path, she notes, has been contemporaries offering opportunities, as opposed to the industry at large. So, not the gatekeepers, then? “Definitely not them”, she confirms, adding amusedly: “They don’t want us to win.”

Rising Success

Individuals who had doubts regarding Sennott then will certainly be feeling foolish now. Through she calls a “incredibly circular” development, she seems to have created an ideal role. Previously she uploaded content called on LA life online, in which she lampooned film promos (“Everyone’s hooked on something”). Now, she’s a lead creator (with the co-writer) of a show about city dwellers juggling benefits of online celebrity (such as partying at Elijah Wood’s house) with its pitfalls (your associate being accused of being a intoxicated stealer, and potentially becoming a “brand unsafe” persona non grata). One might easy to create a series about internet celebrity that was overly glamorous—or, more problematic, one that mocked at its subjects. This show avoids both, making for a depiction of affluent millennial living that’s candid about the grot and the appeal.

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