19 Details About "The Sandman" That Will Make You Love It Even More

From the DCEU references to a real-life sleeping sickness, we've got a lot to cover.

🚨Mild spoilers for The Sandman ahead! 🚨

1. It took eight months to cast Morpheus, and Tom Sturridge had to go through a terrifying hour and a half interview before he found out he’d scored the role.

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The creators wanted to get things right, so no corner was cut in the casting process (plus COVID broke out along the way, which also slowed things down). 

The casting team auditioned over 200 actors, and it was quite a traditional process. The final hurdle was pretty intense though – Tom had a Zoom call with twelve different people and was given what he describes as "a deep, philosophical interrogation" before he was told he'd got the part.

2. And according to Neil Gaiman, the process of casting Death was, to quote: "horrible."

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As you know, the sibling bond between Death and Dream is a key part of the story, so making sure the two characters had chemistry was vital. Neil saw 700 hundred auditions, but he just wasn't convinced by the vast majority of them. 

3. To help bring Matthew to life, Tom acted opposite real ravens.

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Sometimes Matthew was a prop bird, sometimes his scenes were CG, but sometimes, he was played by three very real ravens who apparently all had very different personalities. 

4. When it came to creating the worlds we see in The Sandman, CGI didn't take centre stage. A lot of the amazing sets – including Desire’s threshold and Lucifer’s throne room – were built from scratch.

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Of course, CGI played a big part in bringing some of the story to life, but a surprising amount of the set was physically built, and it was worth it.

5. But, because to COVID-related restrictions, the only set that Neil Gaiman got to physically walk on was the Undercroft where Morpheus was imprisoned.

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And even if the time on set was restricted, it didn't disappoint. He told Netflix, "I was awestruck. It was like walking around in my own head."

6. The creation of "24/7" was a lot more like a stage play than a TV episode.

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We can thank COVID for this one. Because of restrictions, no one could go outside, and this is something the creators capitalised on. The cast spent the time ahead of filming rehearsing the entire episode, and then filmed it in sequence the following day. The entire cast were on set for every shot, and according to Allan Heinberg, it was an experience that none of the cast and crew had experienced. Wholesome much?

7. There was a real "sleeping sickness" epidemic in 1917. Encephalitis lethargica affected over a million people over the course of a decade, and the causes are still uncertain.

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If you weren't already convinced, this alone should prove that Neil Gaiman doesn't play when it comes to the details. Over the course of a decade, the scary mystery illness killed millions and left many others frozen in their bodies. 

8. Neil persuaded Dave McKean, the illustrator behind the original comic book covers, to come out of retirement to create the end-credit sequence.

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Well, retirement from The Sandman, that is. Dave produced the covers from 1989-1997, (as well as the compiled volume), but Neil convinced him to lend his artistic talents to the end-credits, and they're stunning.

9. The Corinthian’s glasses were so dark Boyd Holbrook could barely see – the first time he wore them he kept stumbling into things on set.

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Because of the pandemic, Boyd only got the prop once filming started, and they were pitch black. Luckily it didn't take him too long to get to grips with things, and the glasses quickly became an advantage, helping him transform into the terrifying character we see in the series.  

10. And Mark Hamill agreed to join the cast because he was a fan of the comic.

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According to Neil Gaiman, this is how they got quite a few people to join the cast (including Patton Oswalt and Stephen Fry). When Neil and Allan were discussing Merv's voice, Mark was mentioned, but Neil said they never really thought they'd get him. Luckily, he was wrong about that and the rest is history!

11. Lucifer’s costumes were designed by Gwendoline Christie’s IRL partner, Giles Deacon.

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Giles, Gwendoline, and the creators worked with the costume and hair team to translate and transform the androgynous vibe of Lucifer, who was modelled on a young David Bowie in the comics.

12. And desire’s hair was based loosely on James Dean’s iconic quiff.

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And they wear it well. Neil, Allan, and almost the entire cast said that Desire would be the one to win a Sandman fashion show, so this one makes sense. 

13. Cain and Abel’s costumes get smarter as the episodes progress, just like in the comics.

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While some characters' aesthetics were reshaped for the screen, others were practically lifted off the page and brought to life. This was the case for Cain and Abel, who were drawn very close to their comic counterparts. Did I mention the series has great attention to detail?

14. The nightmare that plagues Johanna mirrors the events in the Hellblazer comic Newcastle: A Taste of Things to Come.

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Fans have been hounding Neil Gaiman to shed light on just how the DCEU would fit in with the series, especially when it came to characters who are currently in other series'. The creation of Johanna Constantine – a descendant of Lady Johanna – was a clever way to circumvent that issue. Though the series doesn't have a John Constantine, Johanna's nightmare is a reference to The Newcastle Incident, which the DCU guide describes as one of the most horrific events in John's life.

15. And there are some clues about Gilbert's real identity, including the fact that he's the only b&b resident who Rose doesn't visit in The Dreaming.

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They're the kind of things that are super subtle, but once you know, you can't miss them. But if you weren't looking for it, you probably didn't even realise that he didn't dream and was wearing so much green.

16. In fact, there are a bunch of nods to the DC universe, including Jed’s Justice League action figure collection.

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In both the waking world and Jed's dreams, there are DC references galore. 

17. And his Sandman costume, which is modelled on a different Sandman – a superhero from the ‘70s.

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Fans of the comic book series will recognise the costume as the one worn by Hector in the Dreaming (which is a whole different topic for another day), but the outfit first came about when Jack Kirby created (superhero) Sandman in 1974.

18. At the Cereal Convention, Jed watches an episode of Static Shock that has a plot that parallels The Corinthian's situation.

Netflix / Kids' WB

It's not really a surprise that Jed's a fan of DC cartoons, but this is a blink and you might miss it detail. "Toys in the Hood" follows Darci, an android who just wants to do her own thing. Over the course of the episode, Darci goes to some pretty extreme lengths to hide from her creator and live as a human. Sounds pretty familiar, don't you think?

19. And finally, William Shakespeare has a cameo, raising some questions that we can hope are answered in season two.

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Morpheus meets Hob Gadling at the pub and overhears a Will Shaxbeard having a conversation with a man named Kit (AKA Christopher Marlowe). We know Morpheus made a deal with him, but little more was revealed.  Well, without giving away any spoilers, the first season covered quite a bit of what went down in the first two volumes of the original story, and if the third volume is on the horizon, we can expect more from ole Shax.

Let us know your favourite fact or detail about The Sandman in the comments below, and keep your eyes peeled for any updates on the second season!