The Sandman: Neil Gaiman Teases Constantine/E03, Answers Questions

Earlier this week, fans who’ve been waiting patiently for news on Netflix’s upcoming The Sandman series adaptation from creator, EP & co-writer Neil Gaiman (Good Omens); EP, co-writer & showrunner Allan Heinberg (Wonder Woman); and EP & co-writer David S. Goyer (Foundation) found that patience rewarded in a big way. So now that the countdown to August 5 is underway (and some doubting folks have time to lick their wounds), Gaiman grabbed some time on Twitter to answer some questions and respond to some thoughts floating out there on social media. And if you’re already a fan of Jenna Coleman‘s occult detective Johanna Constantine, then you’ll definitely want to check out what we have waiting below…

Will Netflix’s “The Sandman” Have a Narrator? “No, but there is a little narration in Episode 1 from one of the characters.”

Did Any Characters Not Make Season 1 Cut That Gaiman Regrets? “No. In many cases I’m amazed they made it in.”

Did Gaiman Ever Have to Put the Breaks on a Script Change? “Not that I remember, but then Allan Heinberg was running the writers room and got to be the one to say ‘That wouldn’t be Sandman’ so I never had to.”

Should You Read the Graphic Novels or Watch the Series First? It’s Tough to Say…: “I think your experience is going to be different reading the graphic novels (or listening to [Audible’s] adaptation) before rather than after watching Season 1. But I don’t know which is going to be better.”

Fans of Jenna Coleman’s Johanna Constantine Should Keep an Eye on Episode 3: After noting an article on how Coleman’s Constantine is being well-received (read our take here), Gaiman noted, “Thinks, O just wait until they see episode 3.”

Again, Gaiman Makes It Clear That All of the Adaptions Are Their Own Universes & Nothing’s Getting Replaced: “I’m not sure it [Netflix series] replaces it [graphic novels], any more than the Audible audiobooks replace it. The graphic novels are still there.

Speaking of the Audible Adaptation, Gaiman Had Some Good News: “The Audible ‘Sandman Act III’ is all recorded, the final tweaks are being done, and soon we will all learn the release date.”

A rich blend of modern myth and dark fantasy in which contemporary fiction, historical drama, and legend are seamlessly interwoven, The Sandman follows the people and places affected by Morpheus, the Dream King, as he mends the cosmic — and human — mistakes he’s made during his vast existence.

“For the last thirty-three years, the Sandman characters have breathed and walked around and talked in my head. I’m unbelievably happy that now, finally, they get to step out of my head and into reality. I can’t wait until the people out there get to see what we’ve been seeing as Dream and the rest of them take flesh, and the flesh belongs to some of the finest actors out there,” said Gaiman in a statement coinciding with the initial casting news on the series. “This is astonishing, and I’m so grateful to the actors and to all of The Sandman collaborators — Netflix, Warner Bros., DC, to Allan Heinberg and David Goyer, and the legions of crafters and geniuses on the show — for making the wildest of all my dreams into reality.”

Stemming from Warner Bros. TV, Netflix’s The Sandman stars Tom Sturridge, Gwendoline Christie, Vivienne Acheampong, Boyd Holbrook, Charles Dance, Asim Chaudhry, Sanjeev Bhaskar, Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Mason Alexander Park, Donna Preston, Jenna Coleman, Niamh Walsh, Joely Richardson, David Thewlis, Kyo Ra, Stephen Fry, Razane Jammal, Sandra James Young, Patton Oswalt, and Mark Hamill.