Alison Arngrim, the original Nellie Oleson, appears in the second episode of Netflix’s reboot.

Original Little House on the Prairie star has surprise cameo in Netflix series

Alison Arngrim, the original Nellie Oleson, appears in the second episode of Netflix’s reboot.

By Mekishana Pierre

Mekishana Pierre

Mekishana Pierre is a news writer at **. She has been working at EW since 2025. Her work has previously appeared on Entertainment Tonight and Popsugar.

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July 10, 2026 11:44 a.m. ET

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Alison Arngrim on Netflix’s ‘Little House on the Prairie’. Credit:

Eric Zachanowich/Netflix

- *Little House on the Prairie *original star Alison Arngrim makes a surprise cameo on the second episode of Netflix’s reboot.

- “It was very fast — maybe two weeks’ notice,” the actress told Tudum of her landing the last-minute role in an interview published on Thursday.

- Arngrim played Nellie Oleson in the original series based on Laura Ingalls Wilder’s books.

Alison Arngrim is proof that once a *Little House on the Prairie** *star, you’re always a *Little House on the Prairie* star.

The 64-year-old actress, who originally became a household name on the beloved ‘70s show as protagonist Laura Ingalls’ nemesis Nellie Oleson, made a surprise appearance on the Netflix reboot which premiered on Thursday. Arngrim showed up in the second episode of the freshman season, playing Ida, one of the women the Ingalls girls come across when they’re out in the woods looking for their friend John Edwards.

During the brief scene, the women tell the girls — Alice Halsey as Laura Ingalls and Skywalker Hughes as Mary Ingalls — that John is with them and that he will return soon. But they panic when he fails to surface, leading to Laura biting Ida on the arm when the older woman attempts to stop her from running away.

Alison Arngrim as Ida (far left) on Netflix’s ‘Little House on the Prairie’.

Eric Zachanowich/Netflix

Arngrim opened up about her return to the prairie in an interview with Tudum published on Thursday.

“I got a phone call: ‘What are you doing in a week and a half? Could you come to Winnipeg? There’s this character, we want it to be you.’ It was very fast — maybe two weeks’ notice,” the actress told the site about her signing up for the role. “I thought, ‘Oh, that’s creepy as all get‑out. That sounds right up my alley. I’ll be right over!’”

She explained how different getting ready for the role was compared to her time on the original series, admitting that the costuming “blew my mind.”

“On our show in 1974, we didn’t really do corsets. We had some authentic stuff — little camisoles, bloomers — but on this show, it’s the slip, and then the corset goes over the slip, full corseting, full costuming,” she shared. “I was in heaven. I love this stuff. I thought, ‘Oh, we’re going *all out*. This is fabulous.’”

Arngrim also reflected on working with Halsey and Huges, whom she praised as being “fabulous” as they take over the iconic roles originated by Melissa Gilbert and Melissa Sue Anderson. “First of all, they have much longer résumés than any of us did back in ’74,” she began. “These little girls have résumés longer than some people who are 40 or 50 years old, and they’re 12. I was like, ‘Whoa, dude.’ It’s fabulous that they’ve been able to work.”

“These kids are great, and they seem to be great friends; their relationship felt very healthy and friendly,” she added. “The girls are just so good.”

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Arngrim, who’s been open about having to embrace the hatred from audiences over playing the “villain” Nellie, then shared her excitement for the young actress who will take over the mantle in the reboot’s second season, Willa Dunn.

“Oh my God — I’ve been waiting for the new Nellie for years. I absolutely went bonkers,” the actress gushed. “My advice? Take it and run with it. Enjoy yourself. As far as I know, it’s the most fun part to play ever. There’s enormous fun to be had. Make friends with the other girls — become friends with [the people who play] your mortal enemies on the show. Don’t hold back; fraternize away. Become friends with all the other kids. It’ll serve you well.”

Alison Arngrim as Nellie Oleson on ‘Little House on the Prairie’.

NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty

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She added a message advising Dunn that she’ll need to take the reaction from viewers “in stride.”

“If you do this correctly, there will be people who will hate you — and think the show is real,” she explained. “There are people genuinely afraid of me, genuinely angry. I’ve had people come up and say, “I hated you. I hate you.” And I go, “Thank you. You’re too kind.” I get it. But if you don’t have that weird sense of humor and solid sense of ‘This is me, that was Nellie,’ it can be rough. So know who you are, and don’t take it personally.”

*Little House on the Prairie* is now available to stream on Netflix.

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