Ever since the first issue of Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman was published in 1989, there have been people trying to adapt it for the screen, and over the years the author has made no secret of the fact that he has actively foiled plans to those whom he did not. I think he would do her justice.
Netflix’s ten-episode take on the material not only has their stamp of approval, but Gaiman was heavily involved in its creation. But that didn’t stop actors Tom Sturridge, who plays Dream, and Vivienne Acheampong, who appears as Dream’s friend Lucienne, from feeling the pressure on set.
“He did this with us. He wrote the first episode, along with [showrunner] Year [Heinberg] and David Goyer,” Sturridge tells Total Film. “I was looking at every frame of everything we were doing. He was always there, if not physically because of COVID, but Zoomily. It is true in everything, but yes, it does not relax you because this is something that matters a lot to me. I’m a big fan myself and, you know, the burden of people’s dreams was very real. but knowing that everything we were doing was being directed in some way by its creator was very reassuring, for sure.”
Also starring the likes of Boyd Holbrook, Kirby Howell-Baptiste, David Thewlis, Jenna Coleman and Gwendoline Christie, The Sandman takes stories directly from Gaiman’s graphic novels. Follow Dream, a powerful cosmic being, as he travels to different worlds, from Hell to modern-day London, to retrieve his tools and restore balance after being imprisoned for over a century by a ruthless magic user.
It turns out that the latter had been trying to capture Death in hopes of resurrecting his dead son, but the spell backfired. Morpheus blended into it, and his absence has caused chaos throughout the universe. Fortunately for the actors, much of the sets were practical, allowing them to fully immerse themselves in the high fantasy sense of the story.
“That was one of the most amazing things about this job. I remember the first time I walked into Lucienne’s library and was like, ‘Oh my God, this is absolutely amazing.’ I just wanted to play everything,” laughs Acheampong.
“That’s what makes this show work. The creatives behind the show have been absolutely amazing because it’s so detailed and so real that it just brings out the truth. Yes, it’s epic. But within that there has to be truth for it to work.” . because you’re talking about humanity. So the only things that really needed to be green screen were green screen and special effects, which are also just as wonderful. But it was very, very real and tangible. For me as an actor, it was very exciting to work that way.”
“A story like this already requires an extraordinary leap of imagination. Not having to do that with everything was amazing. I mean, the talking raven was a real raven. Lucifer’s lair was built; the fires were real,” adds Sturridge. “The marble columns were real, the murals on the wall were painted. That makes a huge difference.
“So the other thing that’s important, I think, is that when we dream, we often don’t know that we’re dreaming, because it seems real to us,” he explains. “I think the danger of something like this is that you start treating it like some kind of computer game that you don’t connect to. They really wanted these spaces to be palpable and feel as real as a dream, even though that sounds like a contradiction.” .
The Sandman is available to stream now. If dark fantasy isn’t your thing and you’re overwhelmed by the amount of content on the streamer, check out our guide to the best Netflix shows for inspiration.
