NEED TO KNOW<\/h3>\n\n- \n\n
Alice Halsey stars as Laura Ingalls in Netflix\u2019s Little House on the Prairie<\/em> reboot, which arrived on Thursday, July 9<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n- \n\n
The 11-year-old actress says she felt pressure to honor Laura\u2019s legacy but embraced the character\u2019s complexity<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n
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Halsey bonded closely with her castmates, calling her on-screen sister and parents a supportive team<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Alice Halsey knows Laura Ingalls Wilder<\/a> is iconic.<\/p>\nThe 11-year-old actress, who had a breakout role in Apple TV\u2019s Lessons in Chemistry<\/em>, spoke with PEOPLE ahead of the premiere of Netflix\u2019s Little House on the Prairie<\/em><\/a>. Not unlike Laura, she loves being outdoors and enjoys \u201cdrawing, jump-roping … walking, running,\u201d as well as singing and playing the piano. But the young star\u2019s first passion is acting, so the gravity of taking on the role of Laura, the imaginative and adventurous frontier girl generations have fallen in love with thanks to the real Wilder\u2019s book series and Melissa Gilbert<\/a>\u2018s portrayal of the character in NBC\u2019s 1970s TV show<\/a>, is not lost on her.<\/p>\n\u201cI think it\u2019s a huge privilege to be able to play this amazing character,\u201d Halsey shares. \u201cShe\u2019s been an icon across generations and I feel so honored that I get to play this character and be shown on-screen as Laura Ingalls.\u201d<\/p>\n
She adds, \u201cI think my favorite part might have been being able to just figure out who she is because she definitely has a lot of sides to her.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n<\/div>\nAlice Halsey and Skywalker Hughes on \u2018Little House on the Prairie\u2019Credit: Eric Zachanowich\/Netflix<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n
She admits she does feel some \u201cpressure\u201d to get the role just right, though.<\/p>\n
\u201cI felt a lot of responsibility to Laura and the writers and [showrunner] Rebecca [Sonnenshine]<\/a> to do it right. I knew that I had to honor her legacy and her story because she really was an amazing woman, a storyteller, a writer and a hard worker,\u201d Halsey says. \u201cSo I felt a lot of pressure, but I think I was surrounded by amazing castmates and I\u2019m just so glad that I could do it with them.\u201d<\/p>\nIn season 1, viewers see Laura being deeply empathetic and curious as she makes friends with members of the Osage tribe, including Good Eagle (Wren Zhawenim Gotts), a young girl around Laura\u2019s age who lives near the Ingalls\u2019 homestead. But she\u2019s also plagued with self-doubt at times and envious of her older sister Mary\u2019s (Skywalker Hughes) ease in social situations, including a particularly memorable tea party.<\/p>\n\n\n![\"Alice](\"https:\/\/hermes.media.static.aol.com\/media\/2026\/07\/09\/3f7a1e81-5c58-3b80-8222-efb81ce4132c\/9e3fee94-0cb2-4300-b5ba-bf5d4ada3e9f.jpg\"\/)
<\/div>\nAlice Halsey on \u2018Little House on the Prairie\u2019Credit: Eric Zachanowich\/Netflix<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n
Halsey loves the challenge of playing a character with so many layers. \u201cShe is a complicated character. She is brave and she\u2019s strong and she definitely is a little bit impulsive and a little bit self-conscious,\u201d she says. \u201cI think that she feels like she has to prove herself to everybody that she cares about that she is able, she\u2019s capable of providing for them and protecting them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Laura also \u201creally, really wants friends,\u201d but Halsey points out that she \u201cdoesn\u2019t really fit in\u201d beyond the prairie. She would often rather be out hunting with her Pa (Luke Bracey) than doing her schoolwork or visiting the town of Independence with her Ma (Crosby Fitzgerald) and Mary.<\/p>\n
As Halsey shares, Laura \u201cneeds to be who she is and who she is isn\u2019t fitting in.\u201d She adds, \u201cSo it\u2019s this constant push and pull.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n![\"Skywalker](\"https:\/\/hermes.media.static.aol.com\/media\/2026\/07\/09\/3f7a1e81-5c58-3b80-8222-efb81ce4132c\/bfd5a0f5-93be-44c9-a2a9-282a3be99454.jpg\"\/)
<\/div>\nSkywalker Hughes and Alice Halsey on \u2018Little House on the Prairie\u2019Credit: Eric Zachanowich\/Netflix<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n
For Halsey, being surrounded by such a supportive group of actors has made donning Laura\u2019s pigtails much easier. The Days of Our Lives<\/em> alum gives 14-year-old Hughes a special shout-out, adding that they\u2019re \u201clike real sisters.\u201d<\/p>\n\u201cNo, we are real sisters, not by blood, but still,\u201d she says. \u201cRight when we met each other, we clicked immediately. It was like we saw each other and we were just like, \u2018Yeah, so that\u2019s my sister.\u2019 I remember on my first day on set, I was so nervous. First day on a big job and I remember I walked into the tutoring room and Skywalker just runs up to me and gives me the biggest hug and I felt so welcomed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her TV Ma and Pa have been equally welcoming. \u201cThey\u2019re the best ma and pa I could have ever asked for,\u201d she says of Fitzgerald and Bracey. \u201cCrosby is so funny … even the most random moments, she can make us laugh. It\u2019s just so easy to connect with her and act. It just flows.\u201d<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, she describes Bracey as \u201ca calming presence on set.\u201d<\/p>\n
Halsey shares, \u201cYou can just focus and tap into him when things are getting chaotic. And he\u2019s also an amazing actor. You can just listen to him and just follow what he\u2019s doing and look into his eyes and just feel.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n![\"Skywalker](\"https:\/\/hermes.media.static.aol.com\/media\/2026\/07\/09\/3f7a1e81-5c58-3b80-8222-efb81ce4132c\/8d5148ae-0039-4afb-a82b-bafbdfea261e.jpg\"\/)
<\/div>\nSkywalker Hughes, Crosby Fitzgerald, Alice Halsey and Luke Bracey on \u2018Little House on the Prairie\u2019<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n
Alice Halsey stars as Laura Ingalls in Netflix\u2019s Little House on the Prairie<\/em> reboot, which arrived on Thursday, July 9<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n The 11-year-old actress says she felt pressure to honor Laura\u2019s legacy but embraced the character\u2019s complexity<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n Halsey bonded closely with her castmates, calling her on-screen sister and parents a supportive team<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n Alice Halsey knows Laura Ingalls Wilder<\/a> is iconic.<\/p>\n The 11-year-old actress, who had a breakout role in Apple TV\u2019s Lessons in Chemistry<\/em>, spoke with PEOPLE ahead of the premiere of Netflix\u2019s Little House on the Prairie<\/em><\/a>. Not unlike Laura, she loves being outdoors and enjoys \u201cdrawing, jump-roping … walking, running,\u201d as well as singing and playing the piano. But the young star\u2019s first passion is acting, so the gravity of taking on the role of Laura, the imaginative and adventurous frontier girl generations have fallen in love with thanks to the real Wilder\u2019s book series and Melissa Gilbert<\/a>\u2018s portrayal of the character in NBC\u2019s 1970s TV show<\/a>, is not lost on her.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s a huge privilege to be able to play this amazing character,\u201d Halsey shares. \u201cShe\u2019s been an icon across generations and I feel so honored that I get to play this character and be shown on-screen as Laura Ingalls.\u201d<\/p>\n She adds, \u201cI think my favorite part might have been being able to just figure out who she is because she definitely has a lot of sides to her.\u201d<\/p>\n Alice Halsey and Skywalker Hughes on \u2018Little House on the Prairie\u2019Credit: Eric Zachanowich\/Netflix<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n She admits she does feel some \u201cpressure\u201d to get the role just right, though.<\/p>\n \u201cI felt a lot of responsibility to Laura and the writers and [showrunner] Rebecca [Sonnenshine]<\/a> to do it right. I knew that I had to honor her legacy and her story because she really was an amazing woman, a storyteller, a writer and a hard worker,\u201d Halsey says. \u201cSo I felt a lot of pressure, but I think I was surrounded by amazing castmates and I\u2019m just so glad that I could do it with them.\u201d<\/p>\n In season 1, viewers see Laura being deeply empathetic and curious as she makes friends with members of the Osage tribe, including Good Eagle (Wren Zhawenim Gotts), a young girl around Laura\u2019s age who lives near the Ingalls\u2019 homestead. But she\u2019s also plagued with self-doubt at times and envious of her older sister Mary\u2019s (Skywalker Hughes) ease in social situations, including a particularly memorable tea party.<\/p>\n Alice Halsey on \u2018Little House on the Prairie\u2019Credit: Eric Zachanowich\/Netflix<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n Halsey loves the challenge of playing a character with so many layers. \u201cShe is a complicated character. She is brave and she\u2019s strong and she definitely is a little bit impulsive and a little bit self-conscious,\u201d she says. \u201cI think that she feels like she has to prove herself to everybody that she cares about that she is able, she\u2019s capable of providing for them and protecting them.\u201d<\/p>\n Laura also \u201creally, really wants friends,\u201d but Halsey points out that she \u201cdoesn\u2019t really fit in\u201d beyond the prairie. She would often rather be out hunting with her Pa (Luke Bracey) than doing her schoolwork or visiting the town of Independence with her Ma (Crosby Fitzgerald) and Mary.<\/p>\n As Halsey shares, Laura \u201cneeds to be who she is and who she is isn\u2019t fitting in.\u201d She adds, \u201cSo it\u2019s this constant push and pull.\u201d<\/p>\n Skywalker Hughes and Alice Halsey on \u2018Little House on the Prairie\u2019Credit: Eric Zachanowich\/Netflix<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n For Halsey, being surrounded by such a supportive group of actors has made donning Laura\u2019s pigtails much easier. The Days of Our Lives<\/em> alum gives 14-year-old Hughes a special shout-out, adding that they\u2019re \u201clike real sisters.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo, we are real sisters, not by blood, but still,\u201d she says. \u201cRight when we met each other, we clicked immediately. It was like we saw each other and we were just like, \u2018Yeah, so that\u2019s my sister.\u2019 I remember on my first day on set, I was so nervous. First day on a big job and I remember I walked into the tutoring room and Skywalker just runs up to me and gives me the biggest hug and I felt so welcomed.\u201d<\/p>\n Her TV Ma and Pa have been equally welcoming. \u201cThey\u2019re the best ma and pa I could have ever asked for,\u201d she says of Fitzgerald and Bracey. \u201cCrosby is so funny … even the most random moments, she can make us laugh. It\u2019s just so easy to connect with her and act. It just flows.\u201d<\/p>\n Meanwhile, she describes Bracey as \u201ca calming presence on set.\u201d<\/p>\n Halsey shares, \u201cYou can just focus and tap into him when things are getting chaotic. And he\u2019s also an amazing actor. You can just listen to him and just follow what he\u2019s doing and look into his eyes and just feel.\u201d<\/p>\n Skywalker Hughes, Crosby Fitzgerald, Alice Halsey and Luke Bracey on \u2018Little House on the Prairie\u2019<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>