Netflix’s reboot ofLittle House on the Prairiehas hitched up its wagon. The new vision ofLaura Ingalls Wilder’s classic series of novels, and its long-running and well-remembered TV adaptation, has found its main character.Lessons in Chemistry’sAlice Halseywill play Laura Ingalls on the new TV series. Halsey steps into the shoes ofMelissa Gilbert, who played the role on the original TV series. Joining her will beLuke Bracey(Point Break) andCrosby Fitzgerald(Palm Royale) as her parents, andSkywalker Hughes(Joe Pickett) as her sister Mary.
Halsey starred as the daughter ofBrie Larson’s chemist-turned-cooking-host on Apple TV+‘sLessons in Chemistry, and has also appeared onDays of Our LivesandNight Court. She also lends her voice to the Disney Jr. animated seriesKindergarten: The Musical. She takes on the role of Laura Ingalls, the fictionalized version of the books’ author, who serves as the viewpoint character for the series. Gilbert, who starred in the original series as a child, gave Netflix’s renditionher blessingin an appearance onThe View, stating, “I support the project. It’s just like, you know, different versions ofLittle Women, it’s another…people’s interpretation of a classic story.”
What Is ‘Little House on the Prairie’ About?
In 1869, Laura Ingalls and her family settled in various locations throughout the then-open American west, homesteading and enduring a variety of hardships. She wrote aboutthose experiencesdecades later in a series of popular children’s novels. They were most famously adapted in an NBC TV series that ran for 200 episodes over nine seasons between 1974 and 1983. In addition to Gilbert, it starredMichael Landon(Bonanza) as patriarch Charles,Karen Grassle(Wyatt Earp) as mother Caroline,Melissa Sue Anderson(Happy Birthday to Me) as elder sister Mary, and twinsLindsay and Sidney Greenbushas younger daughter Carrie. Landon also produced the series, which often featured strong Christian themes to reflect his own faith. Its family-friendly nature made it a favorite with audiences, who followed it as the settlement of Walnut Grove developed into a bustling frontier town, and as Laura aged into womanhood. The series concluded with three TV specials. In the final special, the entire town, Little House and all, is dynamited to prevent it from falling into the hands of a greedy land developer. It has remained popular in syndication and on streaming.
Netflix’s newLittle House on the Prairiewill be showrun and executive produced byRebecca Sonnenshine(The Vampire Diaries,The Boys).Joy Gorman Wettelsfor Joy Coalition,Trip Friendlyfor Friendly Family Productions,Dana Fox, andSusanna Fogelwill also executive produce. The series' pilot episode will be directed bySarah Adina Smith(Lessons in Chemistry).
Netflix’sLittle House on the Prairieis in development;no release date has yet been announced. Stay tuned to Collider for future updates.
Little House on the Prairie
