Netflix to reboot 'Little House on the Prairie' series
Little House on the Prairie, the beloved book series adapted into television during the '70s, is getting a reboot from Netflix.
In a blog post, the streaming giant said Rebecca Sonnenshine—who wrote and produced The Boys, The Vampire Diaries, and Archive 81—will be the new adaptation's showrunner and executive producer.
Other executive producers of the series include Joy Gorman Wettels, Trip Friendly, Dana Fox, and Susanna Fogel. Friendly's father, Ed Friendly, was the producer of the '70s adaptation.
The logline for Netflix's adaptation reads: “Part hopeful family drama, part epic survival tale, and part origin story of the American West, this fresh adaptation of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s iconic semi-autobiographical Little House books offers a kaleidoscopic view of the struggles and triumphs of those who shaped the frontier.”
Sonnenshine, being at the helm of the Netflix adaptation, is reinforced by her love of the books as a kid.
“I fell deeply in love with these books when I was 5 years old,” she said. “They inspired me to become a writer and a filmmaker, and I am honored and thrilled to be adapting these stories for a new audience.”
Friendly, meanwhile, said it's been his "long-held dream" to carry on his father’s legacy and adapt the books for a 21st-century audience "in a way that brings together fans of both the books and the original television series."
“I am thrilled by our talented creative team led by Rebecca Sonnenshine who are bringing these beloved stories about family, community, and survival to long-time fans and new generations," he added.
The Little House books, published in the 1930s, are based on Wilder's childhood stories growing up in the 19th-century American West. She wrote them during the Great Depression.
The books have sold more than 73 million copies in over 100 countries and have been translated into at least 27 languages.
The '70s adaptation ran for nine seasons with 204 episodes. It released three films afterward.
The first Little House TV adaptation, which is on Peacock, celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2024. Nielsen, a media audience measurement firm, reported that the series had 13.3 billion minutes of viewing time that year alone.
