The Sandman creator Neil Gaiman has addressed whether the upcoming live-action Netflix adaptation will include cameos from throughout the DC Universe — like the comics did — or whether they’ll be nixed from the final product. If you were looking forward to seeing tons of DC characters, it’s best not to get your hopes up. According to Gaiman, the new show is an opportunity “to do it with the economy of not needing to exist in a shared universe in the same way.”
When Neil Gaiman wrote The Sandman comics, it was set firmly within the boundaries of the DC Universe, and he weaved in popular characters. It’s particularly prevalent in the first volume, Preludes and Nocturnes, where the Justice League and even Martian Manhunter make appearances, but members of the DC canon show up throughout the entire run. Notably, in volume 10 “The Wake,” Batman, Martian Manhunter, and Clark Kent show up in the same panel. See for yourself.
So the question is: Will we see scenes like this in the upcoming Netflix adaptation? Of course, the hugely popular Audible audiobook adaptation made basically no changes to the source text. However, Gaiman has revealed that the Netflix show will deviate from the source material in that respect. “As Sandman went along it seemed naturally to drift away from the DC Universe into one that looked a lot more like ours,” he wrote on his Tumblr page.
"Making Sandman for Netflix is a chance to do it again, and to do it with the economy of not needing to exist in a shared universe in the same way. So when we do the Joe Simon and Jack Kirby Dream Dome Sandman stuff, we do it slightly differently, and we don’t need the scene with the Justice League to get Dream to the Ruby."
At least that’s all cleared up. It seems fair for them to move away from the DC cameos. Not only are rights a problem, but it could also be the case that viewers become confused as to where and how these characters fit into the timeline, especially with many of them appearing in other, unrelated movies and TV shows. Sticking to the core Sandman story looks to be a good move, although I would like to see some DC characters sprinkled in here and there. Obviously, several DC characters such as Element Girl are too important to the story to leave out completely, although they might be changed.
Death is Britsh in Netflix’s The Sandman
Another question on the minds of Sandman fans is whether the beloved character of Death will have a British accent. The character was voiced by Kat Dennings in the audiobook, with her American accent. In the Netflix show, Kirby-Howell Baptiste has confirmed that she’ll be using her English voice. “I don’t know that the cosmic entity of Death is bound to any place on this Earth,” she told Collider. “But I am British so in this iteration, yes, Death is a Brit.”
The Sandman doesn’t have a release date yet. Filming has finished and it is currently in post-production. It is expected to premiere sometime in 2022. In the meantime, we can enjoy watching the first look teaser for the hundredth time, above.
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