Author Neil Gaiman confirms that Netflix has finally started proper production on The Sandman. Now it’s time for some casting announcements!
The Sandman is a beloved graphic novel, but it’s had a long road on its way to adaptation. For example, Logan director James Mangold pitched the idea of a Sandman show to HBO back in 2010, but it didn’t happen. It got to the point where fans deemed the comic unfilmable, but now Netflix if finally doing what others could not, and according to author Neil Gaiman, shooting has officially begun!
Dreams do come true.
Filming commenced on Thursday, October 13. They started at the beginning of the story, at Wych Cross, where Roderick Burgess plans a ritual to capture Death of the Endless, but captures her brother Dream instead. “Dr John Hathaway has brought a book from the museum in which he works, to Roderick Burgess,” Gaiman wrote on Twitter, where he’s been giving fans something of an unofficial countdown.
Oh, we started shooting on Thursday. Dr John Hathaway has brought a book from the museum in which he works, to Roderick Burgess. But you're right, it's going to be time to announce some casting soon. https://t.co/goXqhEZHgi
— Neil Gaiman (@neilhimself) October 18, 2020
This is a huge step for The Sandman. It’s all beginning to feel real.
Gaiman also mentions that casting news is imminent. At the time of writing, we have no casting news at all, though there have been murmurings. It’s been rumored that English actor Tom Sturridge (The Boat That Rocked, Mary Shelley) was in talks to play Dream, the main character. Dacre Montgomery (Billy Hargrove in Stranger Things) and Liam Hemsworth (Gale Hawthorne in The Hunger Games) were reportedly in contention for the role of the nightmare creature the Corinthian.
I particularly fancy Dacre Montgomery for Corinthian; he plays a rather good villain. Also, who’s to say Gaiman and the team won’t look at the recent Audible audiobook for inspiration? Gaiman has already told RadioTimes.com that this is something he did with the adaptation of Good Omens.
The Sandman on Audible has a crazy good cast. There’s James McAvoy as Dream, Kat Dennings as Death, Michael Sheen as Lucifer, Andy Serkis as Matthew the Raven, and Taron Egerton as John Constantine. Any of those people would fit into the Netflix show seamlessly!
There’s a whole lot of interesting things they could do with the casting. Some fans are even calling for Tom Ellis to reprise his role as Lucifer.
If one thing is for sure, with filming underway, all will become clear soon!
To stay up to date on everything fantasy, science fiction, and WiC, follow our all-encompassing Facebook page and sign up for our exclusive newsletter.
Get HBO, Starz, Showtime and MORE for FREE with a no-risk, 7-day free trial of Amazon Channels