The Sandman: Tom Sturridge, Gwendoline Christie & more join Netflix series adaptation
The cast for Netflix’s The Sandman series adaptation, based on the beloved comic book series written by Neil Gaiman and published by DC Comics, has been revealed, including Tom Sturridge (Sweetbitter) headlining as Dream, the Lord of the Dreaming, and Gwendoline Christie (Game of Thrones) starring as Lucifer, the ruler of Hell (via The Hollywood Reporter).
You have all waited so patiently, so here you go. It’s time to announce things. It’s time to name the Dream Lord. And several other people…
(You might want to go and follow @NXOnNetflix for the lowdown.) pic.twitter.com/9kFavimB4c
— Neil Gaiman (@neilhimself) January 28, 2021
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Additional cast members include Vivienne Acheampong (The Witches), Boyd Holbrook (Narcos, Logan), Charles Dance (Game of Thrones), Asim Chaudhry (Black Mirror: Bandersnatch), and Sanjeev Bhaskar (Yesterday).
The live-action adaptation is described as: “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.”
Acheampong will play Lucienne, the chief librarian and trusted guardian of Dream’s realm. Holbrook will portray The Corinthian, an escaped nightmare who wishes to taste all that the world has in store. Dance will play Roderick Burgess, a charlatan, blackmailer, and magician. Chaudry and Bhaskar are set as Abel and Cain, the first victim and the first predator, who are residents and loyal subjects of the Dream Realm.
Last year, Gaiman confirmed that the Netflix series would take place in 2021, stating “Morpheus will have been kept prisoner in the Netflix version for 105 years rather than 70 years.”
Pick Up the first volume of Sandman by clicking here!
“For the last 33 years, the Sandman characters have breathed and walked around and talked in my head,” Gaiman said. “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.”
The Sandman live-action series is being written by Gaiman (American Gods) and Allan Heinberg (Wonder Woman, Grey’s Anatomy). Heinberg will also serve as showrunner. David S. Goyer (Batman Begins, Foundation) will executive produce the drama from Warner Bros. Television. Last year, Gaiman has also revealed that they are also already planning for a potential second season.
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There have been countless attempts to turn the seminal Sandman comics into live-action adaptations before, dating back to the ’90s when the series began. Recently Joseph Gordon-Levitt was attached to star in and direct a feature film adaptation at WB’s New Line Cinema before that version failed to materialize.
Sandman, which launched DC Comics’ Vertigo imprint, ran for 75 issues beginning in 1989. Gaiman’s worlds-within-worlds weaved an episodic anthology, focusing on the allegorical character of Dream and his brothers and sisters, known as the Endless (Death, Desire, Despair, Delirium, Destruction, and Destiny).
(Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images & Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)