The star enters the video call and right away launches into an excuse. “Apologies for the delay!” she exclaims, seeming truly regretful. Despite being only a bit behind, she needs to explain. “I tend to talk too much during calls. “Earlier calls made me late—I just can’t stop chatting!” Fortunately, during an interview, that’s precisely what you want to hear. Besides, it’s quite predictable. Viewers familiar with her fearlessly LGBTQ+ and unapologetically crass film Bottoms—which Sennott collaborated on with Emma Seligman and featured in together with collaborator Ayo Edebiri—can already know that Sennott has plenty to discuss, be it on gender, sex, or the merits of starting a youth fight club. Furthermore, by the end the recent multi-episode show I Love LA, it becomes obvious that she has additional thoughts regarding the challenges of modern youth (Now in her thirties, Sennott serves as a relatable figure of the gang, straddling eras with a knack for straddling both generations).
Guiding Lights and Artistic Direction
The comparisons to Lena Dunham’s groundbreaking show naturally arise and the actress readily acknowledges an admirer, referencing it together with the classic series, Issa Rae’s show and Atlanta as inspirations for the project, which tracks the struggles of online personality Tallulah and ally and fledgling talent manager portrayed by Sennott. Perhaps, the most significant influence on the moodboard belonged to Entourage, that HBO sitcom focusing on an emerging A-list actor navigating in an often-seedy entertainment industry (choice quote: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). She began viewing it throughout lockdown, became “obsessed”, and resolved to put her own twist on it “targeting women and LGBTQ+ viewers”.
“I sought to highlight online platforms as the new industry, since my professional journey launched there,” she notes. The concept for the series emerged—in part—from firsthand, initially difficult, transition to LA and from her astrological phase, a frequently discussed phenomenon for followers. It was an era that saw her grasp some big insights, in her career and in private life. “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…”
Humble Origins
Raised in Connecticut, Sennott began writing and performing humor while enrolled in theatre at New York University (NYU) Tisch School of the Arts. “Despite trying every conventional route, I couldn’t find my footing,” she explains. “Every campus humor group turned me down after tryouts.” “Theatre productions at school also didn’t accept me. “It left me questioning my purpose and place.”
She seized control, taking the stage at live shows with her friend and posting hysterical (and very) unconventional skits on the internet. A particular video, Baby Cult, depicted several females obsessively fixated on motherhood; another envisioned being employed at the brand Hollister as like being caught in a thriller. In a neat twist of fate, she connected with Emma through campus film circles and eventually appearing in her first film, Shiva Baby, a stressful dramedy set at a Jewish wake with echoes of Uncut Gems. The central motif of her path, she explains, has been peers giving her a shot, rather than the industry at large. So the old guard wasn’t helpful? “They were not involved”, she confirms, stating amusedly: “They don’t want us to win.”
Manifesting Dreams
Anyone who had doubts about her then will likely be kicking themselves now. In what she labels a “astonishingly complete” story, she seems to have achieved the perfect project. Previously she shared content titled about Los Angeles on the internet, in which she mocked Hollywood trailers (“Everyone’s hooked on something”). Now, she’s a lead creator (with the co-writer) of a show about city dwellers managing advantages of online celebrity (such as socializing at a celebrity’s house) with drawbacks (your associate being accused of being a intoxicated criminal, and potentially becoming a “brand unsafe” pariah). One might tempting to produce a series about internet celebrity that was extremely idealized—or, even less favorable, one that belittled at its subjects. I Love LA avoids both, creating a depiction of affluent young adult life that’s frank about the chaos and the glamour.
Empathetic Approach
“Many programs portray youth and online life with disdain and mockery,” she observes. “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
