Enter ‘Sandman’: Netflix Unveils First Footage From Neil Gaiman Fantasy Series (VIDEO)

Fans of Neil Gaiman and DC Comics have been waiting decades for his comic book series The Sandman to make it to screen, and that moment is finally nigh.

At its TUDUM event on Saturday, September 25, Netflix gave those fans a first look at the long-awaited dark fantasy series.

During the virtual presentation, Gaiman—an executive producer on the series—joined actors Tom Sturridge and Kirby Howell-Baptiste—who play Dream and Death, respectively—to introduce the new footage. And the trio also revealed that Sandman devotees will find exclusive character posters on the show’s social media accounts, which are now live.

Check out the clip below:

Related

Netflix Unveils First Looks at 'The Sandman,' 'Locke & Key' S2 & More on Geeked Week Day 2

Netflix describes The Sandman as “a rich blend of modern myth and dark fantasy in which contemporary fiction, historical drama, and legend are seamlessly interwoven.”

And Gaiman is excited about the talent cast bringing his characters to screen, especially Baptiste-Howell. “Hundreds of talented women from all around the planet auditioned, and they were brilliant, and none of them were right,” he said. “Someone who could speak the truth to Dream, on the one hand, but also be the person you’d want to meet when your life was done on the other. And then we saw Kirby Howell-Baptiste’s audition, and we knew we had our Death.”

The call sheet also boasts Gwendoline Christie, Charles Dance, Joely Richardson, Jenna Coleman, Stephen Fry, David Thewlis, Kyo Ra, and Vivienne Acheampong. Oh, and Patton Oswalt plays Matthew the Raven, a trusted emissary of Dream’s.

“Could we find an actor who could make you care about a dead person who was now a bird in the Dreaming… and could we find a voice performer who was also the kind of Sandman fan who used to stand in line to get his Sandman comics signed?” said Gaiman. “The answer was, we could if we asked Patton Oswalt. And Patton was the first person we asked, and the first person we cast, the day before we pitched The Sandman to Netflix.”

For Netflix’s 2021 TUDUM event—billed as a “global fan event” and named after its intro sound effect—the streaming giant assembled more than 100 stars to introduce trailers, clips, and announcements for more than 100 series, films and specials. The event kicked off at noon/11a Central today, Saturday, September 25, and is streaming on YouTube, Twitch, Facebook, and Twitter.