The star appears on the digital interview and right away begins an apology. “Apologies for the delay!” she says, appearing genuinely regretful. Although she's only a bit late, she wants to explain. “My phone conversations always run long.” “Earlier calls made me late—I just can’t stop chatting!” Luckily, in this context, that’s precisely what you want to hear. Additionally, it’s fairly unsurprising. Those who know her boldly queer and outspoken project titled Bottoms—which she collaborated on with Emma Seligman and featured in alongside her friend the talented actress—can already know that Sennott has much to say, be it on gender, relationships, or the pros of creating a teen brawl society. Plus, once you finish the latest multi-episode HBO series I Love LA, viewers realize that the star holds further insights about the challenges of Gen Z life (At 30, Sennott is a bridge for this generation, on the cusp with a knack for bridging both generations).
Guiding Lights and Storytelling Approach
Parallels to the iconic series Girls are inevitable and Sennott readily acknowledges enthusiastic, naming it in addition to Sex and the City, Insecure and Donald Glover’s series as influences for the project, which follows the journey of a social media star played by Odessa A’Zion and close companion and aspiring agent portrayed by Sennott. However, the largest influence on concept went to the popular sitcom, the program focusing on an emerging A-list actor succeeding in an often-seedy Hollywood (notable statement: “happiness eludes everyone but failures in this city”). Sennott started watching it during lockdown, became “captivated”, and resolved to add a fresh perspective on it “for the girls and the gays”.
“I sought to highlight online platforms as the new industry, since my professional journey launched there,” she explains. The inspiration for the series originated—to some extent—from firsthand, originally rocky, move to Los Angeles and from her astrological phase, a much-talked-about event for astrology heads. This represented an era that included her understand significant life lessons, in her career and in private life. “My twenties began with constant public emotional outbursts and disorganization,” she recalls. “After relocating to Los Angeles in my mid-twenties, I found stability, only for things to crumble. “The struggles felt almost mythic in scale…”
Early Beginnings
Growing up in Connecticut, Sennott commenced developing and showcasing humor while studying acting at a prestigious arts school. “I followed traditional paths to get on stage, but nothing clicked,” she says. “Auditions for university comedy troupes led to universal rejection. “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 open mics with Ayo and uploading hysterical (and distinctly) unconventional comedy videos on the internet. One, Baby Cult, centered on a group of women fetishistically drawn to having babies; another envisioned working at the brand Hollister as akin to being trapped in a horror film. In a neat twist of fate, she met Seligman through NYU’s movie community and ultimately appearing in her first film, titled Shiva Baby, a tense comedy set at a funeral gathering with shades of Uncut Gems. The big theme of her career, she explains, has been people her own age giving her a shot, instead of established gatekeepers. So the old guard wasn’t helpful? “Not the gatekeepers”, she confirms, stating with a laugh: “Our victory isn’t their goal.”
Manifesting Dreams
Anyone who were skeptical about her earlier will certainly be kicking themselves currently. As part of she describes as a “incredibly circular” turn of events, she appears to achieved the perfect project. Previously she posted content called “it’s LA” on the internet, in which she parodied film promos (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Years later, she’s the co-showrunner (with her partner) of a series about city dwellers managing benefits of online celebrity (such as partying at Elijah Wood’s house) with downsides (your associate being suspected of being a drug-addled criminal, and potentially becoming a unreliable persona non grata). It would be easy to create a series about internet celebrity that was extremely idealized—or, more problematic, one that punched down at those depicted. The series does neither, resulting in a depiction of advantaged young adult existence that’s frank about the chaos and the shine.
Empathetic Approach
“There have been a lot of shows that depict young people and their relationship to the internet in this very condescending, hateful way,” 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
