It seems that nowadays every successful TV show needs to spawn a massive, all-encompassing 'cinematic universe'. We have Marvel, Star Wars, The Walking Dead, Star Trek...the list goes on. However, when it comes to Netflix's The Sandman, creator Neil Gaiman isn't too fussed about building out a wider universe.
Of course, Netflix recently expanded its Sandman Universe with the release of Dead Boy Detectives, which is set within the same continuity; the main characters originate from a one-off issue of Gaiman's Sandman comic book. The show even contains a couple of crossovers, including an appearance by Death (Kirby Howell-Baptiste). Releasing a series like this shows clear intent by Netflix to build out a larger Sandman continuity, but when you look back on the history of its development, you learn some interesting things.
Dead Boy Detectives was originally an HBO Max series, a spinoff focused a couple of detective characters from the show Doom Patrol. However, this version of the show was ultimately axed and Netflix picked up the rights, changing things to make it part of The Sandman mythos.
Speaking to Business Insider, Neil Gaiman recalls what it was like having Dead Boy Detectives over at Max and The Sandman on Netflix. "I mean, I'm just amused really at the fact that with Dead Boy Detectives, the first thing I had to do was have conversations with Steve Yockey about how to file off all the Sandman serial numbers because it was gonna be on HBO Max, and Sandman was over on Netflix," he said. "And then when HBO Max turned to us and said, 'We cannot actually screen it until 2025,' and we're like, 'But that's ridiculous,' I went to Netflix and said, 'Would you like it?'" And the rest is history.
Because it's on Netflix, Dead Boy Detectives could include characters like Death and Despair (Donna Preston). With that said, Neil Gaiman isn't massively into building out a series of spinoffs. "Do I care about creating a huge new Sandman universe?" he asked. "Not particularly."
Dead Boy Detectives creator Steve Yockey has high hopes for the future!
Netflix has not renewed Dead Boy Detectives for more seasons yet. We'll have to wait and see how it performs in its opening weeks and go from there. Right now, it's holding its own in Netflix's trending list. Needless to say, showrunner Steve Yockey is very keen on making more episodes for as long as Netflix will allow him to. "I think there’s not a limit that we found yet to how far we could go, but that’s very brash answer," he told Deadline. "I would say we’ve had some really, really good conversations about what a second season would look like."
Co-showrunner Beth Schwartz talked about how season 1 sets up a season 2. "We ended the season specifically to set up a Season 2, because all our characters are going back to London and the agency has expanded."
Hopefully Netflix will make a decision on the show's future soon, and fingers crossed it's a positive one! Dead Boy Detectives is now streaming on Netflix.
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