Nellie Oleson is Laura Ingalls’s most formidable foe in the original Little House on the Prairie books and series. Now, Laura (Alice Halsey) will have her hands full once again: Willa Dunn will take on the role of the legendary troublemaker in Season 2 of Netflix’s Little House on the Prairie.
On the surface, Nellie is a world-class spoiled princess and playground bully. Smart and supremely confident, sharp-tongued but easily wounded, Nellie is full of contradictions. One thing is certain: She lives and breathes to make Laura miserable. Yet beneath her mean-girl persona lies a tenderness and yearning for true friendship — even if she doesn’t know exactly how to get it.
Before Nellie storms onto the prairie in Season 2, Season 1 of Little House on the Prairie takes Laura, Ma (Crosby Fitzgerald), Pa (Luke Bracey), and Mary (Skywalker Hughes) from their cabin in the Big Woods of Wisconsin to a small community on the expansive prairie in search of a new start. Learn more about the Ingalls’ experience in Independence with the new teaser.
Rebecca Sonnenshine (The Boys, Vampire Diaries, Archive 81) helms the new take on the American classic, with Season 1 due on Netflix July 9. Little House on the Prairie has already been renewed for Season 2, which is when we’ll get to meet Dunn as the new Nellie.
Dunn is known for turns in Poker Face, Coup!, Inside Amy Schumer, and Only Murders in the Building, in which she plays Little Loretta (Meryl Streep’s character).
Sonnenshine showruns and executive produces. Also executive producing are Joy Gorman Wettels for Joy Coalition, Trip Friendly for Friendly Family Productions, and Dana Fox.
Since its original publication in the 1930s, the Little House book series and brand have remained a constant in the global zeitgeist. The classic novels have sold over 73 million copies in more than 100 countries, and have been translated into at least 27 languages. Most recently, 50 years after the 1974 show debuted, Nielsen reports that fans of all generations have embraced the nostalgic series, which garnered an astonishing 13.25 billion minutes of viewing in 2024 alone.
Stay tuned to Tudum for more updates on Little House on the Prairie Season 2.
