Meet the latest cast members for Netflix’s new series ‘The Sandman’

One of the most exciting projects at Netflix, if you’re a giant nerd like most of us, is the live-action television adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s classic comic, The Sandman. In the series, we follow Morpheus, aka Dream of the Endless, who is on a journey to retrieve his objects of power after being imprisoned for decades. (Or, well, that’s how the first arc of the comic goes.)

So far, The Sandman has cast Tom Sturridge as the titular character with Gwendoline Christie, Vivienne Acheampong, Boyd Holbrook, Charles Dance, Asim Chaudhry, and Sanjeev Bhaskar. The biggest bit of news from that round of casting was Christie, who is set to play Lucifer Morningstar in a deliciously wonderful twist on the world. Seriously, we’re ready to die for this devil. 

Now, however, a dozen more key roles have been cast for the upcoming Netflix series. There are some pretty great names filling things out moving forward. Who is playing what? What can we expect from The Sandman? Here’s everything you need to know about this casting. 

We have Death! (And Despair and Desire, but Death!!!) 

Before we get into the other casting news. The biggest bit from this round of announcements comes down to the casting of Death of the Endless. Death is, quite possibly, the most beloved character to ever come out of The Sandman series. The cheerful representation of Death is known for rocking the black tank-top, ankh, and some seriously sick eyeliner.

Her appearance in “The Sound of Her Wings” is a turning point for the series as a whole, and inspired a million cosplays. Kirby Howell-Baptiste (The Good Place) will be bringing Death to live-action. The character’s depiction honestly can make or break a series. Howell-Baptiste is a great actress so we’re excited to see what she’s going to bring to the role. 

Rounding out the news of the casting of the Endless are Donna Preston (The Hitman’s Bodyguard) as Despair and Mason Alexander Park (Cowboy Bebop) as Desire. Park, who identifies as nonbinary, is particularly great casting as Desire themselves are portrayed as genderfluid, switching between genders as easily as breathing. 

Who else joined the cast for The Sandman?

The rest of the cast announcement is pretty exciting as well. Patton Oswalt will voice Matthew the Raven, who is Morpheus’ companion & animal familiar. Henderson Wade is set to play Matthew’s human form, Matt Cable. Honestly, don’t expect for Wade & Oswalt to overlap in any way. David Thewlis from the Harry Potter franchise will play John Dee, a villain who challenges Dream for rule over people’s dreams.

Now, honestly, we’re curious to see the overlap here. Dee, in comics, was a villain known as Doctor Destiny, who escaped from Arkham Asylum in Gotham. So will we see bigger hints of the DC Universe at play? John Constantine plays a big role in this arc as well. Though, we think, it may be taken over by his ancestor Lady Johanna Constantine, played by Jenna Coleman (Doctor Who).

Another big casting news for the humans of The Sandman is Rose Walker, played by newcomer Kyo Ra. Rose has a huge role in The Sandman comics. Rounding out the cast announcement are Razane Jammal as Lyta Hall, Joely Richardson as Ethel Cripps, Niamh Walsh as the younger Ethel Cripps, Stephen Fry as Gilbert, and Sandra James Young as Unity Kincaid. Either way, The Sandman is creating a marvelous cast.

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What do you think about the casting news for The Sandman? Are you excited by the new casting for Dream’s siblings in the Endless? Do you think Lady Johanna Constantine will have John Constantine’s role in the series? Will we get a mention of Gotham when John Dee’s story comes into play? Let us know in the comments down below!