Fans were taken aback by the news that Neil Gaiman’s seminal DC/Vertigo comic book ‘The Sandman’ was being adapted as a TV series for Netflix. On a promising note, this program will carry the biggest budget of any DC TV project yet. Allan Heinberg (‘Grey’s Anatomy’) will write and serve as showrunner. Gaiman will act as an executive producer alongside Heinberg and David S. Goyer (‘Krypton’).
But needless to say, with a property as beloved as ‘The Sandman’, fandom has a lot of questions, and Gaiman is only too happy to answer some of them. For starters, the first season of the TV show will have 11 episodes, and Gaiman will co-write the first. However, no work has begun in earnest, as he stated: “No Sandman TV scripts have been written yet, by anyone for any reason.” He also stated that casting has not begun.
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However, one fan speculated that ‘Sandman’ would need to be about “50 hours” to fully adapt the entire run of Gaiman’s comic, he actually clarified:
“More than that. The first season would only be Preludes and Nocturnes. And a bit more.”
So now fans even know which storyline will kick off Netflix’s series.
He also sounded off on a few other topics via Twitter.
Gaiman served as showrunner of the Amazon miniseries ‘Good Omens’, based on the novel he wrote with the late Terry Pratchett, largely in order to ensure the adaptation lived up to Pratchett’s memory. But Gaiman has stressed that this was a one-time go at this role. When a fan asked if he would be willing to act as showrunner on ‘The Sandman’, Gaiman responded:
“No. I’m a retired showrunner.”
When asked how involved he would be with the creation of ‘The Sandman’ in contrast to ‘Good Omens’ or STARZ’s ‘American Gods’, also based on one of his novels, Gaiman responded:
“Much more than American Gods. Less than Good Omens.”
Just to clarify, ‘The Sandman’ won’t be a period piece.
“Good Omens didn’t need to be period drama. I don’t think Sandman does…”
And finally, for fans who fell in love with the stories in its original format, Gaiman hopes that the show will capture that same sense of wonder, just in a new format.
I’m hoping we can make something on television that feels as personal and true as the best of the Sandman comics did. Just set thirty years later than Sandman the comic. https://t.co/Wy8y4aDbdE
— Neil Gaiman (@neilhimself) July 1, 2019
Do you still have any unanswered questions about Netflix’s adaptation of ‘The Sandman’?
