According to Deadline, Netflix’s upcoming Little House on the Prairie reboot has added six new cast members ahead of production, starting in June in Winnipeg, Canada. The new series, produced by CBS Studios and helmed by showrunner Rebecca Sonnenshine, blends historical drama with Indigenous representation. Jocko Sims (New Amsterdam, Grosse Pointe Garden Society), Warren Christie (The Watchful Eye, Land), Wren Zhawenim Gotts (Echo), Meegwun Fairbrother (Avatar: The Last Airbender, The Sticky), Alyssa Wapanatâhk (Peter Pan & Wendy, Cottonmouth), and Xander Cole (People of the West, You Can Take It With You) have been cast.
Sims and Christie will portray familiar characters from Laura Ingalls Wilder’s novels, while the other cast members will portray a newly created Osage family central to the reimagined story. According to Deadline, Sims portrays Dr. George Tann, a real-life figure, who once saved the Ingalls family from malaria. Christie plays John Edwards, a Tennessee-born Civil War veteran with a magnetic presence. Ewards becomes a favorite among the women in the town, single and married.
In a major narrative expansion, Gotts, Fairbrother, Wapanatâhk, and Cole will portray a fictional Osage family not present in the original novels, via Deadline. Their story brings an Indigenous perspective to this Western tale. Fairbrother plays Mitchell, described as a “tender-hearted man” who built a thriving Kansas homestead. Wapanatâhk joins the series as White Sun, Mitchell’s sharp-witted wife. Gotts will portray Good Eagle, their imaginative daughter known for her storytelling—a cultural touchstone in Native traditions. Cole rounds out the family as Little Puma, White Sun’s younger brother.
According to Deadline, the new Little House on the Prairie is billed as part survival story, part family drama, and part American West origin tale. It builds on Wilder’s beloved series while integrating new cultural narratives. Directed by Sarah Adina Smith (Birds of Paradise, Lessons in Chemistry), the pilot will be produced by CBS Studios in collaboration with Anonymous Content Studio, Joy Coalition, and Friendly Family Productions.
Deadline reports Sims as repped by IAG and Skrzyniarz & Mallean, and brings his experience from New Amsterdam and NBC’s murder-mystery Grosse Pointe Garden Society. Christie, known for Hulu’s The Watchful Eye, is represented by Play Management and Jackoway Austen Tyerman.
Gotts, of the Sokaogon Chippewa Community, shares Indigenous culture nationwide through performance, according to Deadline. Wapanatâhk, from Bigstone Cree First Nation, recently wrapped Cottonmouth opposite Ron Perlman (Mrs. & Mrs. Smith). Fairbrother, who is of Scottish and Ojibway descent, also appeared in SkyMed and Burden of Truth. Cole, a member of the Osage Nation, is repped by Reel Talent Studio.
According to Deadline, the series is expected to premiere in 2026.