A new year means we should be hearing a lot more about Netflix’s The Sandman in the coming months after filming began in October 2020. Here’s the latest on The Sandman including all the current casting rumors, where the series is in production and when we can expect to see it grace our Netflix subscriptions.
In July 2019, it was reported by Deadline that Netflix and Warner Bros. TV had held talks to discuss the future of Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman. With confirmation that Netflix has successfully picked up the series shortly afterward, this brought the title out of the development limbo that it had been in for over a decade.
The adaptation will be handled by Allan Heinberg who previously worked on Wonder Woman and Grey’s Anatomy will serve as both writer and showrunner of The Sandman. Creator of The Sandman, Neil Gaiman will serve as an executive producer alongside David S. Goyer.
When is The Sandman season one coming to Netflix?
In an interview with Digital Spy, Neil Gaiman confirmed that the series will be arriving at some point in 2021. Given the production delays (see below) we’re currently expecting the latter half of 2021.
What is The Sandman?
The Sandman is an American comic book series created by Neil Gaiman. It stands as one of the few comic book titles to become a New York Times bestseller. The Sandman series was the flagship title for Vertigo comics. Neil Gaiman’s writing is famous for his take on mythology and his use of anthropomorphic personification of metaphysical entities. Some of Gaiman’s most recent and most popular works are titles such as Starz’ American Gods, Good Omens on Amazon Prime, and Lucifer on Netflix.
The story of the Sandman revolves around the character Dream, one of the Seven Endless. Dream, along with the other ‘Endless’ are billions of years old and each represents an embodiment of a natural force. Dream, also known as Morpheus along with a whole heap of other names and titles acquired over billions of years, is the anthropomorphic personification of dreams. Morpheus resides in his realm “The Dreaming” where he has complete and utter control but struggles to adapt to change (a common theme recurring throughout the series).
At the beginning of the story, Morpheus is summoned by occult ritual but is captured and held prisoner for 70 years. Eventually escaping, Morpheus would reap his vengeance upon his captors and would return to his realm. During Morpheus’ absence, his realm had fallen into a state of disrepair and would set about rebuilding it. While captive, Morpheus had time to reflect on his past but the challenge of undoing past sins would be an enormous undertaking that’s billions of years old and set in his ways.