The comedic talent on the uproarious show about the messy appeal of today's youth lifestyle

The performer joins the video call and immediately begins an excuse. “Oh my God – I’m sorry!” she states, appearing really remorseful. She is only slightly delayed, she needs to clarify. “My phone conversations always run long.” “Previous discussions went over, and I realized I talk too much!” Thankfully, during an interview, this is precisely what you want to experience. Moreover, it’s pretty expected. Anyone who know the unapologetically queer and brash project Bottoms—which she penned with Emma Seligman and appeared in together with collaborator the talented actress—will understand that Sennott has much to share, ranging from about roles, relationships, or the appeal of starting a youth brawl society. Plus, once you finish her latest eight-part program I Love LA, it is clear that the star carries additional thoughts on the challenges of young adulthood (Now in her thirties, she represents a bridge for this generation, a tale-end millennial with a knack for connecting different age groups).

Inspirations and Artistic Direction

Likenesses to the iconic series Girls are inevitable and the actress admits to being a fan, referencing it alongside the classic series, the acclaimed comedy and Atlanta as guides for her series, which details the journey of online personality Tallulah and ally and new representative Maia. Perhaps, the most significant presence on creative vision was reserved for Entourage, that HBO sitcom about an up-and-coming A-list actor making his way in a corrupt LA scene (choice quote: “only the unsuccessful find joy here”). She started watching it throughout the pandemic, became “obsessed”, and decided to put her own twist on it “targeting women and LGBTQ+ viewers”.

“I wanted to make a show where the internet, not Hollywood, was the industry, because my career started online,” she explains. The idea for the series came—to some extent—from firsthand, originally rocky, transition to LA and from her saturn return, a popular event for followers. That period marked a time that involved her grasp significant insights, work-wise and individually. “In my early 20s I was so messy, crying in public everywhere, all the time,” she says. “In my mid-20s, I moved to LA and got settled. And then I felt like everything started to just fall apart. “The struggles felt almost mythic in scale…”

Early Beginnings

Brought up in the East Coast, Sennott started developing and showcasing stand-up while enrolled in performance at NYU’s Tisch. “I followed traditional paths to get on stage, but nothing clicked,” she states. “Every campus humor group turned me down after tryouts.” 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 decided to act independently, appearing at amateur nights with Ayo and posting uproarious (and decidedly) bizarre online content on the internet. A particular video, Baby Cult, depicted several females fetishistically fixated on pregnancy; another portrayed working at a trendy retail outlet as similar to being trapped in a thriller. Interestingly, she met Emma through NYU’s movie community and ended up starring in her first film, Shiva Baby, a tense dramedy set at a funeral gathering with echoes of the Safdie brothers’ movie. The central motif of her journey, she explains, has been contemporaries giving her a shot, instead of traditional networks. Does that mean bypassing the usual powers? “Definitely not them”, she confirms, continuing with a laugh: “They prefer we don’t succeed.”

Rising Success

Anyone who had doubts about her then will surely be feeling foolish currently. In what she describes as a “astonishingly complete” turn of events, she seems to have achieved her dream vehicle. In 2019 she posted a video titled about Los Angeles on social media, in which she lampooned Hollywood trailers (“I’m addicted to drugs – we all are”). Now, she’s executive producer (with Emma Barrie) of a show about city dwellers juggling advantages of digital stardom (such as socializing at Elijah Wood’s house) with drawbacks (your friend being labeled as being a intoxicated stealer, and potentially becoming a “brand unsafe” pariah). Some could tempting to create a program about internet celebrity that was horribly idealized—or, even less favorable, one that belittled at its subjects. The series steers clear of each, making for a representation of privileged twentysomething existence that’s frank about the mess and the glamour.

Empathetic Approach

“Numerous series present younger generations and digital culture in a derogatory manner,” 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

Isaiah Rose
Isaiah Rose

Elena is a food enthusiast and journalist based in Amsterdam, specializing in global cuisine and budget-friendly dining.