Rachel Sennott Is HBO’s New ‘It’ Girl. Here’s How She Got There.

Rachel Sennott has always seemed one viral moment away from stardom, and with her new HBO series, I Love LA, that moment has officially arrived. Premiering Sunday, the irreverent comedy stars Sennott as Maia, an aspiring talent agent whose life starts spiraling when her ex-best friend turned influencer, Tallulah, resurfaces. Alongside a stacked cast that includes Josh Hutcherson, True Whitaker, Odessa A’zion, and Jordan Firstman, Sennott dives headfirst into a world of algorithmic shallowness, creative burnout, and the existential dread of “making it” in Los Angeles. Think Girls for the content-poisoned generation, or even Entourage if it were written by someone with a TikTok addiction.

But I Love LA didn’t come out of nowhere. Sennott has spent the past few years building a resume and a persona that readied her for this moment. When HBO first announced the show over a year ago, the internet responded with immediate hype, proof of how thoroughly Sennott cultivated her fan base of smart and terminally online cool girls. She’s the rare actress who seems to exist both on-screen and in the timeline, every meme, red carpet clip, and viral quote adding another layer to her mythology. But how, exactly, did she become the girl everyone suddenly wants to know? Below, we trace the defining moments that made Rachel Sennott Hollywood’s most internet-coded star.

@connertrill
come on, it’s LA!!!!!! #ilovela @Rachel Sennott #hbo
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The “C’mon It’s LA” Meme (2019)

Before she was HBO’s new face of influencer burnout, Sennott was the woman behind one of the most quintessentially “LA” clips of the last few years. You’ve probably seen it. She smirks, tosses her hair around, and says, “C’mon, it’s LA. I’m addicted to drugs—we all are! If you don’t have an eating disorder? Get one, bitch!” All while Azealia Banks’ “212” blasts in the background.

The video became shorthand for everything people both love and loathe about Los Angeles—the delusion, the irony, the unapologetic self-parody. That tone carries directly into I Love LA. In interviews, Sennott addressed just how much of that clip inspired by the very internet caricature of LA life that the meme embodied.

Shiva Baby (2020)

Sennott’s true breakthrough came with Shiva Baby, the indie film that turned awkwardness into a weapon. Playing Danielle, a bisexual, semi-directionless college student trapped at a funeral with her sugar daddy, his wife, and her parents, Sennott delivered a performance so tense and hysterically real. She made Danielle insufferable and sympathetic all at once—the kind of character you cringe at but can’t stop watching. Sennott’s humor had a sharp edge, grounded in the specific neuroses of young women trying to survive post-college limbo. In hindsight, Shiva Baby laid the foundation to prop Sennott up a performer who thrives in discomfort. Without Shiva Baby, there’s no I Love LA.

Bodies Bodies Bodies (2022)

In Bodies Bodies Bodies, Sennott delivered what’s arguably her best performance, as Alice, the terminally online podcast friend who live-tweets her own trauma. She managed to be both hilarious and devastating. Her frantic monologue about podcasting, validation, and class ("Your parents are upper middle class") became instantly quotable. The film’s satirical take on Gen Z’s self-absorption was already sharp, but Sennott elevated it as Alice. She’s annoying, yes, but also desperate to be liked, heard, and, most importantly, hashtagged.

@a24
upper 🔪 middle 🔪 class 🔪 #bodiesbodiesbodies @treaclychild #myhalaherrold
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Bottoms (2023)

Co-starring fellow “It” girl Ayo Edebiri, Bottoms followed two unpopular girls who start a fight club to hook up with cheerleaders, a concept so beyond unhinged it could only work with Sennott’s brand of deranged sincerity. Her performance as PJ made this part teen movie parody, part queer farce. Sennott and Edebiri’s chemistry turned the movie into an instant cult classic, and their friendship made them the internet’s favorite comedic duo. Bottoms solidified Sennott’s comedic identity. She’s not afraid to be ridiculous, horny, or unlikable. The film proved she could headline a studio comedy while keeping her indie edge intact.

The “Fatima in a White Way” Meme (2023)

Few actresses could turn being compared to “a white woman named Fatima” into a cultural moment, but Sennott did just that. The now-legendary meme—“She kinda look like her name is Fatima but in a white way”—first surfaced in mid-2023. Most celebs would have ignored it. Sennott, ever the internet anthropologist, did the opposite, referencing it on a red carpet with the sort of wink only someone raised on Twitter could pull off. Her knowing embrace of the joke kind of cemented her status as a someone who just gets the digital audience they play to.

I Used to Be Funny (2023)

Just when everyone thought Sennott could only be a comedy girl, she swerved. In I Used to Be Funny, she plays Sam, a stand-up comedian grappling with trauma and the loss of her creative spark. It’s a tender, restrained performance, one that reveals the emotional backbone not many of knew Sennott had. Critics called it her most mature role yet, and for good reason. The film showed that Sennott’s understanding of pain and humor aren’t opposites; they’re connected. Her comedic timing gives the drama texture, while her vulnerability gives the jokes weight.

The Idol (2023)

Let’s be honest, The Idol was not a great show. But Sennott somehow emerged from it unscathed, even praised by some. Sennott played Leia, Lily-Rose Depp’s frazzled assistant and friend. It was a thankless role, but Sennott made it memorable. Her performance was a reminder that even in messy projects, she can locate the humor and make it shine. It also placed her firmly within HBO’s orbit—a connection that had to have paved the way for I Love LA. If The Idol was a misfire, it wasn’t Sennott’s fault by a long shot, and it ultimately worked in her favor.

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