As Netflix’s Little House on the Prairie introduces the Ingalls family to a new generation, stars Luke Bracey and Crosby Fitzgerald discuss bringing Charles and Caroline to life, and behind-the-scenes stories from Season 1.

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Growing up, it was a show my family and I watched every week, and even now, it's still one of my favorite comfort shows. So when Netflix announced a brand-new adaptation of Laura Ingalls Wilder's beloved books, I couldn't wait to see how a new cast would bring the iconic Ingalls family to life.

After watching Season 1, one of the things that stood out to me most was the chemistry between Luke Bracey and Crosby Fitzgerald, who beautifully capture what makes Charles and Caroline Ingalls such beloved characters.

I recently had the chance to sit down with Luke and Crosby to talk about preparing to play the iconic couple, their favorite behind-the-scenes memories from Season 1, and what they hope families will take away from the series.

Note: This interview has been modified for length and clarity.

Crosby: I grew up reading the books, and my mom is also a huge fan. During my audition process, she was collecting antique copies of the series without telling me. She didn't want to jinx anything, but then she let me know afterward.

I also read books like Prairie Fires and learned about the real Ingalls family; however, I tried to let some of that go. The scripts were so beautifully written and already had so much about Caroline. I really focused on making her feel like a real person — someone who's flawed, who's growing, and who has a really interesting arc.

Luke: I actually had no connection to the books or the show growing up. My first experience with Little House was actually my first audition. As Crosby said, I felt the scripts were so solid, and the characters were so well fleshed out. 

What I love about Charles is that he's a good man. He wants to be a good member of his community, and that's something I aspire to be myself.

I also wanted to make him feel like a real person. He makes plenty of mistakes, but he wants to be a good husband and a good father.

When it came to immersing myself in the world, I read some of the books and then watched the Ken Burns epic, The West. There's one part about a family who had their photo taken outside their home, and you could just see how proud they were of what they'd built. That really stayed with me.

Crosby: We also had a book called Frontier Women in my trailer, and every now and then we'd flip to a random page and read an excerpt. It really reminded us just how hard life was back then.

Luke: Wagon driving — that was intense. You've got a whole bunch of power with two horses and a big wagon. It's just you and some reins, and we've got two young girls in our care in the back with us. It really gave us a perspective on how tough it was.

Crosby: There are a few scenes where I'm knitting socks or mending a shirt. I'm not a home ec major by any stretch of the imagination (laughs), so it was actually good to learn some of those things. What you learn is that everything is so tactile.

Crosby: Before Luke and I met, we talked on the phone a little bit, and then we started putting together a playlist for Charles and Caroline. We put on different songs that we were either introducing to each other, that we both really liked, or that we thought exemplified the couple's goals for their family. It was a fun way to get to know each other from afar.

Crosby: Once we got to Winnipeg, the girls sealed the deal. I went in thinking, "I hope they like me!" They just immediately ran over and gave us hugs, and were so excited. They kind of set the tone for that, and we let them continue to set the tone and empower them on set. They really took charge, and that just made every day feel so easy.

Luke: Alice [Laura] and Skywalker [Mary] are wonderful young people. As Crosby said, when you get to work with wonderful people, it makes it easy. They're just so effervescent and smart and funny, and we're forever thankful for that. It's wonderful to spend our days with them.

Luke: We love him. We feel so fortunate that the three of us get to work together, because we are all friends, and he's just the nicest bloke in the world. He's got a great saying: "Take the work seriously and don't take yourself seriously."

Crosby: It was really cool. Little House is one of my first big jobs, and this scene was early on in filming, so I really didn't know what to expect. 

You walk into work one day, and you get on a boat out to the wagon in the middle of a massive tank. The wagon is on hydraulics, so it's really flipping. I'm really holding on so that I don't really fall into the water that has horse poop in it. 

It was one of those days on set where you're just like, "Wow, I'm really doing this." It's a dream-come-true type of day.

Crosby: I really loved our audition scene — it was the scene between Charles and Caroline in the tent in the first episode. So much was built into that. 

I love the scene when Mary and Laura are in the back of the wagon, after Mary is really mad at Laura for embarrassing her in the shop. Laura looks up at Mary, and is like, "Do you want to sing?" It felt like such a real sister moment. I really loved it, and it made me laugh.

Luke: Crosby and I also have a wonderful scene at the end of episode 4, where we're sitting at the front of the house, and it's this great moment between us. 

I have many beautiful scenes with the girls, but my favorite one with Alice would be episode 3, when she's worried that she's caused a problem, and I get to say to her, "You've got a big heart, just be careful with it." 

I love my scene with Skywalker by the fire at Christmas. Charles tells her that she's growing up and that he trusts her. I love those moments with the girls — they're incredible actresses.

Crosby: (Laughs) I kept accidentally taking the wooden wedding rings home — I must have seven of them by now. Now for Season 2, props will give it to me on set, and then take it from me when we're done for the day.

I would love to have my town bonnet, the beautiful brown one.

Luke: I was given one of the flyers that Charles takes, which was really cool, and they framed it for me. I would love to have my hat. I would definitely mow the lawn in Charles's hat.

Crosby: I hope they take away that community is really important. No one can do it alone. Also, I think everyone can take away from Laura's open-mindedness.

Luke: Family is important. Being a good person is important. It's okay to make mistakes, as long as you learn and try to be better every day. Try to be a good member of your community, a good family member, and a good friend. You're going to get kicked down, that's an absolute guarantee. But if you keep getting up — that's what really matters.

Little House on the Prairie is now streaming on Netflix.

Follow Luke and Crosby on Instagram, @lukebracey and @crossberryfitz.

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