Netflix announces cast for The Sandman series

Staff Writer

Netflix has unveiled the cast for its new series The Sandman, and the ensemble is as star-studded as it gets.

Gwendoline Christie, Boyd Holbrook, Asim Chaudry, Sanjeev Bhaskar, Charles Dance, Vivienne Acheampong and Tom Sturridge will all feature in the show, which is based on the DC comic books by Neil Gaiman.

A rich blend of modern myth and dark fantasy in which contemporary fiction, historical drama and legend are seamlessly interwoven, The Sandman follows the people and places affected by Morpheus, the Dream King, as he mends the cosmic — and human — mistakes he’s made during his vast existence.

Gaiman is an Executive Producer and Co-Writer on the series, which is produced by Warner Bros Television. Allan Heinberg (Wonder Woman, Grey’s Anatomy) serves as Executive Producer and Showrunner, while David S. Goyer (Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, Terminator: Dark Fate, Foundation) serves as Executive Producer and Goyer and Heinberg are also Co-Writers on the project.

Gaiman says: “For the last thirty-three years, the Sandman characters have breathed and walked around and talked in my head. I’m unbelievably happy that now, finally, they get to step out of my head and into reality. I can’t wait until the people out there get to see what we’ve been seeing as Dream and the rest of them take flesh, and the flesh belongs to some of the finest actors out there. This is astonishing, and I’m so grateful to the actors and to all of The Sandman collaborators — Netflix, Warner Bros, DC, to Allan Heinberg and David Goyer, and the legions of crafters and geniuses on the show — for making the wildest of all my dreams into reality.”

Sturridge will play Dream, Lord of the Dreaming, Christie will play Lucifer, Ruler of Hell, Acheampong will play Lucienne, chief librarian and trusted guardian of Dream’s realm, Holbrook is The Corinthian, an escaped nightmare who wishes to taste all that the world has in store, Dance is Roderick Burgess, a charlatan, blackmailer and magician, and Chaudry and Bhaskar will play Abel and Cain, the first victim and the first predator, residents and loyal subjects of the Dream Realm.

Netflix’s Sandman to be set in modern day

23rd August 2020

Netflix’s Sandman series will be set in the modern day, Neil Gaiman has confirmed.

A rich blend of modern myth and dark fantasy in which contemporary fiction, historical drama and legend are seamlessly interwoven, the graphic novel follows the people and places affected by Morpheus, the Dream King, as he mends the cosmic – and human – mistakes he’s made during his vast existence.

Netflix confirmed an adaptation was in the works last summer, with Allan Heinberg (Wonder Woman, Grey’s Anatomy) on board as the writer and showrunner, as well as exec producer alongside writers Gaiman and David S. Goyer (Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, Krypton, Foundation).

Netflix ordered 10 episodes from producers Warner Bros. Television. Since then, the project has been halted by the coronavirus update, but it didn’t stop Neil Gaiman from giving fans an update last night as part of DC’s online event, DC FanDome.

Gaiman discussed the show in a panel with Dirk Maggs, G. Willow Wilson and Michael Sheen, noting that casting was starting up again and work was continuing and getting the scripts finely tuned. He also revealed that the show would take Sandman into the present day.

LWhat we’re doing with Netflix is saying ‘OK It’s still going to start in 1916, but the thing that happens in ‘Sandman’ 1, the point that the story starts is not 1988. It’s now,” he said. “How does that change the story? What does that make us have to look at that we wouldn’t have to look at if we were setting it as a period piece? What is that going to do to the gender of characters, what is that going to do to the nature of characters? What’s that going to do to the story?”

“That has been an absolute delight,” he added. “Because it means we are always being true to the story and being true to the characters. But it gives us tremendous freedom to go, ‘OK if we were doing it now what would ‘Sandman’ be?’ And that, again, is very liberating.”

Netflix officially announces The Sandman series

2nd July 2019

Netflix has officially confirmed that an adaptation of The Sandman is in the works.

Reports yesterday revealed that the streaming giant was in talks with a Warner Bros. to bring the comic book character, created by Neil Gaiman, to the screen. Now, Netflix has confirmed the show is on the way.

A rich blend of modern myth and dark fantasy in which contemporary fiction, historical drama and legend are seamlessly interwoven, The Sandman follows the people and places affected by Morpheus, the Dream King, as he mends the cosmic – and human – mistakes he’s made during his vast existence.

Allan Heinberg (Wonder Woman, Grey’s Anatomy) is the writer and showrunner, and will exec produce alongside writers Gaiman and David S. Goyer (Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, Krypton, Foundation).

Gaiman, Heinberg and Goyer will co-write the first episode, with Netflix ordering 10 episodes from producers Warner Bros. Television.

“We’re thrilled to partner with the brilliant team that is Neil Gaiman, David S. Goyer and Allan Heinberg to finally bring Neil’s iconic comic book series, The Sandman, to life onscreen,” said Channing Dungey, VP, Original Series, Netflix. “From its rich characters and storylines to its intricately built-out worlds, we’re excited to create an epic original series that dives deep into this multi-layered universe beloved by fans around the world.”

Warner Bros. and Netflix team up for Sandman TV series

1st July

Warner Bros. and Netflix are reportedly teaming up for a Sandman TV series.

The Vertigo comic, written by Neil Gaiman and illustrated by Sam Kieth, Mike Dringenberg, Jill Thompson, Shawn McManus, Marc Hempel, and Michael Zulli, was first published back in the 1980s and has been targeted for a screen adaptation for almost as many years. Back in 2013, David S. Goyer worked on a film based on the comic books, only for the project to fall apart. Now, Warner Bros. is having another bash, but this time, it’s got big hitters Netflix on board.

Sources tell The Hollywood Reporter that a “massive” deal has been made for the show – a deal that would make it the biggest TV series DC Entertainment has ever done. Gaiman will exec-produce alongside David Goyer, with Allan Heinberg (Wonder Woman, ABC’s The Catch, Grey’s Anatomy) set to write and serve as showrunner.

A formal deal hasn’t been closed and an official statement hasn’t yet been released, but THR reports that the project is headed straight to series.

What we do know is that the comic book is a fantasy horror legend that blends horror and history, following Morpheus, the Lord of Dreams and a number of other figures, including Destiny, Death, Destruction, Despair, Desire and Delirium.

It comes to the screen off the back of a number of successes for Gaiman, including American Gods for STARZ and Good Omens for Amazon Studios, where Gaiman now has a first-look deal in place.

THR reports that Warner Bros. went to multiple outlets, including HBO, with the TV show, but Netflix was the one that ultimately took the bite, as it looks to rival HBO’s Westworld and Watchmen and Amazon’s Lord of the Rings to find its own major genre franchise. Indeed, the streaming giant has, after parting ways with Marvel, since signed up deals with Millarworld, launched The Umbrella Academy, snapped up the rights to The Witcher and Magic: The Gathering, plus bought literary favourites The Chronicles of Narnia and the works of Roald Dahl.

Warner, meanwhile, has made a notable move in shopping Sandman elsewhere, rather than keeping it or its own in-house streaming platform, perhaps indicating just how expensive the production will be. Stay tuned for the official word from both parties.