Netflix’s Sandman Series Will Cover First Two Graphic Novels Says Neil Gaiman

Fresh off the first look at Netflix’s Sandman TV series, creator Neil Gaiman has confirmed how much of the comic series will be covered in the upcoming first season. Responding to a fan on Twitter who asked how much of the comics would be spoiled by the show, Gaiman responded: “The first season covers the first two graphic novels.” Those two collections, “Preludes and Nocturnes” and “The Doll’s House” respectively, cover the first sixteen issues of the 75 issue original series. Since the comic series first premiered Gaiman has had thirty years worth of time to reconsider his approach to the show and will bring some of those changes to the TV adaptation.

“Doing the Netflix TV series, we’re very much looking at that as going, ‘Okay, it is 2020, let’s say that I was doing Sandman starting in 2020, what would we do? How would we change things? What gender would this character be? Who would this person be? What would be happening?’” Neil Gaiman told ComicBook.com and other press about how he’s approaching updating his iconic comic book series for modern television audiences. “The fact that we have seventy-five issues of Sandman plus — essentially, 13 full books — worth of material, is a really good thing. It’s not a drawback. It’s on our side. And the fact that we’re in a world in which we can take things that only existed in comic book art, and that can now exist in reality.”

Logan star Boyd Holbrook, who plays the murderous escaped nightmare the Corinthian previously teased a multi-season plan for the series as well, saying in conversation with Collider: “I think everyone wants the show to continue [beyond Season 1]. I think it’s a standard contract that’s like seven, five years whatever. We have talked about all that. I don’t know if it’ll all work out. I think it might work out in different blocks of time, but yeah you definitely want to have some sort of macro idea of how long something’s gonna last. But I don’t wanna give away the details of how long.”

Tom Sturridge will star as Dream in the upcoming series with other confirmed cast members including Gwendoline Christie as Lucifer, Charles Dance as Roderick Burgess, Asim Chaudhry as Abel, Sanjeev Bhaskar as Cain, Kirby Howell-Baptiste as Death, Dream’s wiser sister and Mason Alexander Park as Desire, Dream’s sibling.

No premiere date for The Sandman has been announced yet.