All We Know So Far

Netflix’s television adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman is gearing up for its much-anticipated Season 2, which is expected to premiere more than two years after the first season debuted in August 2022. The streaming giant also introduced Dead Boy Detectives, rooted in another of Gaiman’s comic books within the Sandman universe, in April 2024. Production of Season 2 was paused due to the double strike in Hollywood in 2023, but with the resumption of work, casting announcements signal that the show is back on track.

On November 29, 2023, The Sandman series resumed production. Neil Gaiman, the creator of the original comic books, expressed his excitement about the project’s continuation. He noted in a letter accompanied by a behind-the-scenes photo featuring Tom Sturridge and Mason Alexander Park, "A journey is beginning that will take us from Destiny’s garden to Hell, from the Heart of the Dreaming to Ancient Greece and revolutionary France… Good things are coming."

The news of Netflix confirming a second season came in November 2022. However, there is still no official release date for Season 2, primarily due to delays caused by the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and Screen Actors Guild (SAG) strikes in Hollywood.

In terms of the ensemble cast for Season 2, Netflix has made some notable additions to the Endless Family. Esmé Creed-Miles has been cast as Delirium, Adrian Lester as Destiny, and Barry Sloane as The Prodigal. These new characters will join returning cast members Tom Sturridge as Dream, Kirby as Death, Mason Alexander Park as Desire, and Donna Preston as Despair.

Additional cast members include Ruairi O’Connor as Dream’s son Orpheus, Freddie Fox as Loki, Clive Russell as Odin, Laurence O’Fuarain as Thor, Ann Skelly as Nuala, Douglas Booth as Cluracan, Indya Moore as Wanda, Steve Coogan as Barnabus, and Jack Gleeson (Game of Thrones) as Puck.

Season 1 of The Sandman followed the story of Dream, also known as Morpheus—an all-powerful cosmic being who governs the realm of dreams. After being captured and held prisoner by occultists for over a century, Dream escapes and embarks on a journey across various worlds and timelines to restore order to his realm. Dream is one of the seven Endless, a family of entities that embody different aspects of existence.

Dead Boy Detectives, another series within the Sandman universe, originally featured in The Sandman #25 comic. Initially intended as a spinoff of Max’s Doom Patrol, Dead Boy Detectives shifted to Netflix, enabling further ties with The Sandman. In this new series, Death (played by Kirby), Dream’s sister, is central to the plot as she pursues the titular characters, Charles Rowland (Jayden Revri) and Edwin Paine (George Rexstrew), attempting to lead them to the afterlife. This portrayal diverges from the comic, where she allows them to remain on Earth. Death appears in the first episode, and Despair, another member of the Endless, also features in the series.

The connections between Dead Boy Detectives and The Sandman extend beyond just characters. Elements such as hell’s landscape and Lucifer’s role in Edwin’s escape from hell differ due to the current progression of The Sandman series, which has yet to explore the "Season of Mists" storyline.

Fans of Neil Gaiman’s work and followers of The Sandman series have much to look forward to, especially with the rich, interconnected narratives and characters expanding within this captivating universe.

Source: Deadline