How do you say “going method” in Elvish?

In Episode 4 of Rachel Sennott’s HBO comedy, I Love LA, the close-knit group of friends embarks on an adventure to a Hollywood bash hosted by an influencer, only to find themselves at the doorstep of a renowned actor. As the group arrives, Alani—played by True Whitaker and depicted as a ‘nepo baby’ with a famous father in the industry—begins to unravel when she discovers the home belongs to none other than Elijah Wood, her celebrity idol. It’s a situation many can relate to.

“When I first read Episode 4, I thought, ‘Oh, so Alani is a huge Lord of the Rings fan and has a thing for Frodo Baggins,’” Whitaker shared in an interview with DECIDER.

Despite Alani’s upbringing in the entertainment world—a background Whitaker knows well as the daughter of Hollywood legend Forest Whitaker—she struggles to keep her cool at the thought of meeting the star of one of cinema’s most iconic series. Whitaker admits that the storyline resonated so deeply with her that it spilled over into her own life.

“As an actor, I never judge my character. I wanted to understand her, so I dived in, spending my weekend watching the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy and even picking up some Elvish,” she explained. Whitaker proudly mentioned that some of her improvisations made it into the final cut of the episode, saying, “It was my improvisation, and I feel proud of it […] I felt a genuine connection to Alani.”

Things progress as Maia (Sennott) and Alani sneak into the part of the house that is roped off and discover Wood silently watching cartoons by himself in a trance-like state. Hilariously, Maia and Alani decide to try and seduce him into a threesome, only for it to go awry as he rejects their advances and gives them vibes more in line with serial killer that lady killer. 

Whitaker told DECIDER that while it may not have been something she could initially relate to, she snapped into gear to understand Alani in preparation of her scenes with Wood. An unintended benefit of becoming a last minute Lord of the Rings fan? Genuine excitement and anxiety around working with the Deep Impact actor.

“Working with him was was awesome, and watching him that whole weekend before [in Lord of the Rings] in preparation, brought the butterflies that I needed to connect to Alani,” she said.

Wood is not the only major name to make an appearance in the show’s first few episodes, however, as Episode 2 features Sennott’s close friend and frequent collaborator Ayo Edebiri. In the series, The Bear Emmy winner plays Mimi Rush, an eccentric British pop star who fires Charlie (Jordan Firstman) after learning he had been fishing for information on Zendaya, who she wanted to star in a music video. 

On the appearance by Edebiri, Sennott and Firstman both said that it was an honor and a pleasure to get to bring her to the set of the comedy — which has already been renewed for Season 2 — and that she tapped right back into her funny side after taking some time to tackle more serious projects.

“I called Ayo because basically, we were like, ‘If we want to hang out, we have to work together.’ So I was like, ‘Do you wanna come to two days on the show?’” Sennott told DECIDER. “And then she brought all these different ideas. She was like, ‘I want to do a mullet. I want a bedazzled vape, I want a British accent. I was like, ‘Yes to everything.’”

Firstman, who got to share the majority of the scenes with Edebiri, added, “I’ve known Ayo for a decade, we wrote on Big Mouth together and obviously, it’s been amazing to see her rise to stardom. But it’s also fun to see her like really get back to her comedy roots and like plays something really outlandish and over-the-top.”

The first four episodes of I Love LA are now streaming on HBO Max. New episodes air on HBO and HBO Max at 10:30 p.m. ET.

If you’re new to HBO Max, you can sign up for as low as $10.99/month with ads, but an ad-free subscription will cost $18.49/month.

If you want to stream even more and save a few bucks a month while you’re at it, we recommend subscribing to one of the discounted Disney+ Bundles with Hulu and HBO Max. With ads, the bundle costs $19.99/month and without ads, $32.99/month.