That extra Sandman episode was supposed to come out a year later

The Sandman, Netflix’s adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s beloved comic book, has been one of the best shows to come out in recent months, which is saying something because there’s been a lot of good stuff. Working with Gaiman, producers Allan Heinberg and David Goyer have managed to both stay true to the complex source material and make it all work on TV. The Sandman is about the anthropomorphic personification of dreams, so it’s heady stuff, but the show has made it accessible and fun.

The producers are generous, too. Fans woke up Friday morning to find a whole new episode to watch: it adapted the stories “Calliope” and “a Dream of a Thousand Cats” from the comic. “The ‘secret’ 11th episode was conceived by Neil and Allan and myself even before we pitched the show to buyers,” Goyer told Variety. “Anyone familiar with ‘Sandman’ knows that there are all these incredible stand-alone issues interspersed throughout the original run and we were determined to adapt those. We pitched everyone the notion of doing an 11th episode that would drop off-cycle and we would use these episodes to adapt those issues — but also as a love-letter to the fans.”

According to Goyer, Netflix was the only potential buyer who agreed to make a “secret” eleventh episode (although certain stuff did end up leaking ahead of time), which was a big part of the reason they went with the streamer. Netflix also “didn’t flinch” when the producers said they wanted to animate  “A Dream of a Thousand Cats.” Considering how good the show has been so far, it looks like Goyer and company made the right call by going with Netflix.

How The Sandman changed “Calliope” for modern audiences

Interestingly, Gaiman says that the original plan was to wait around a year to drop the extra episode, since he knew there might be a long wait in between seasons 1 and 2 of the show. But they decided to push up the release date as a way to thank the fans who had turned the show into a hit.

When those fans tuned in, they were treated to a veritable Milky Way of stars; “A Dream of a Thousand Cats” by itself features the voice talents of Sandra Oh, James McAvoy, David Tennant, Michael Sheen and others. “We got an A-list cast for ‘A Dream of a Thousand Cats’ that we probably could not have gotten for a two- or three-week shoot because they are so busy,” Gaiman said. “But we could get them to record for us. So we could get Michael Sheen and David Tennant and Georgia and Anna. We could get James McAvoy. How mad is that, that James did it for us as a wonderful gesture? Sandra Oh is the biggest for me, the one that I was starstruck by.”

Then there’s “Calliope,” which stars Doctor Who veteran Arthur Darvill as struggling writer Richard Madoc, Derek Jacobi as jaded writer Erasmus Fry, and Melissanthi Mahut as the titular Greek muse, who is cruelly traded from the latter to the former. Richard needs a muse to help him with his writing career, but Calliope won’t help him willingly, because she’s been enslaved for decades and obviously hates her captors. Instead, Fry and Madoc both take her inspiration by force.

“To do a modern retelling, I didn’t want to see the rape scene,” said director Louise Hooper. “I don’t think it helps us in any way to actually see that on screen. You know what’s happening, that she’s being degraded and abused, and her voice is being repressed, but what I wanted from Melissanthi, and what she wanted too, is to have someone that’s an equal in her strength. So how I shot it, in terms of eye lines, her position in the camera with Richard is equals. So yes, she’s in a horrific situation, but she’s a fighter and she’s gonna keep her moral compass strong.”

Success of The Sandman “may not be enough” for a second season

At the end of the episode, we also learn that Calliope and Dream were once married and had a son together: Orpheus, another figure from Greek myth. If The Sandman returns, Heinberg already has some people in mind who could play Orpheus. “I don’t know if I’m allowed to say it, but we’ve talked about someone that we feel very strongly about,” the producer said. “And we have had those conversations and if we get a second season, we would love to be able to cast that person. We are conceiving of the whole season with this person in mind.”

But will The Sandman get another season? The numbers have been excellent, but Gaiman cautions caution. “Sandman is a really expensive show,” he wrote on Twitter. “And for Netflix to release the money to let us make another season we have to perform incredibly well. So yes, we’ve been the top show in the world for the last two weeks. That still may not be enough.”

Okay, well, it’s time for me to watch it over again, because I need more!

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